TORONTO – The Ontario Heritage Foundation today unveiled a provincial plaque to commemorate Fool's Paradise – the home and studio of renowned artist Doris McCarthy, overlooking the Scarborough Bluffs.

The Scarborough Bluffs were created by advancing and retreating glaciers over the past million years. This spectacular geological formation has attracted settlement from Aboriginal peoples to European settlers. The early Toronto family of Scottish immigrants – the McCowans (for whom McCowan Road is named) – settled here in 1833 on 35 acres known as Springbank farm (Fool's Paradise is the easternmost end of Springbank).

But it is another inhabitant for which the area is best known. Born in Calgary in 1910, Doris McCarthy moved with her family to Toronto in 1913. Originally planning to be a writer, McCarthy enrolled in an art course at the Ontario College of Art in her last year of high school, winning a full-time scholarship. There she studied under Arthur Lismer – one of the Group of Seven – and graduated with honours in 1930. In 1932, she began teaching at Toronto's Central Technical School (where she taught until 1972). Over the years, her love of travel has taken her across the globe. And she has produced – and continues to produce – a body of landscapes that speaks to all corners of the world – particularly Canada's Arctic.

In November 1939, McCarthy stumbled on her future home. She paid $1,250 for a property her mother viewed as an extravagance, referring to "that fool's paradise of yours." The name stuck and Fool's Paradise was born, the first building being erected in 1940. Originally a weekend retreat, Fool's Paradise eventually became McCarthy's full-time residence and studio.

"Fool's Paradise is a rare combination of natural, archaeological and cultural heritage that is made all the richer by its long-time inhabitant, the great artist Doris McCarthy," said The Honourable Lincoln M. Alexander, Foundation Chairman.

Fool's Paradise is a significant heritage site. The property is perched on a narrow plateau of the ecologically sensitive and geologically significant Scarborough Bluffs. Scenically positioned, the buildings – set on an expanse of lawn with reflecting pool – are framed by forest and sky. The bluffs and the adjoining Bellamy Ravine – the watershed for a large part of Scarborough – contain deep-stream forested gullies providing habitat for regionally rare plant species, shore birds and small animals.

"Doris McCarthy has created a remarkable body of work," said Ontario Minister of Culture, Madeleine Meilleur. "That work has, in many ways, been inspired by the natural beauty of this property. Today, the Province of Ontario is pleased to recognize Fool's Paradise for all its heritage qualities."

To help conserve the site, McCarthy donated seven acres of Fool's Paradise in 1986 to the Metropolitan Toronto Region Conservation Authority under the Erosion Control Agreement. In her honour, the nature trail running through Bellamy Ravine on the east of the property was officially named the Doris McCarthy Trail by the City of Toronto in 2001. And, in 1998, McCarthy donated the remainder of Fool's Paradise to the Ontario Heritage Foundation for heritage and artistic activities.

"Fool's Paradise has proven to be a place for healing and renewal," said McCarthy, in reflecting on the many artists who have spent time there. "The gratitude of anyone who has spent recuperative time here planted a seed that grew into my plan to turn my home into an artists' retreat."

This unveiling is part of the Foundation's Provincial Plaque Program that commemorates significant people, places and events in Ontario's history. Since 1953, nearly 1,180 of these distinctive blue and gold plaques have been unveiled.

The Ontario Heritage Foundation is a not-for-profit agency of the Government of Ontario, dedicated to identifying, preserving, protecting and promoting Ontario's heritage.

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Contact:

Gordon Pim
Marketing and Communications Coordinator
Ontario Heritage Foundation
Telephone: 416-325-1484
E-mail: gordon.pim@heritagefdn.on.ca