About the Artist
Morag Webster-Lesarge
Morag was born into a Scottish family in Nakuru, Kenya, where her father was a District Officer; when independence came, they moved the family to England. When still quite young, they immigrated to Northern Ontario, Canada, and brought with them the stories, art and spirit of Africa. Monkey tails and poison arrows hung beside Scottish clan crests and pictures of ancestors. Her work explores relationships between culture, nature and politics. She developed bodies of work based on the idea that the evolution of modern culture and the consumerism of nature is pervasively media-based, orchestrated by commercial and political motives.
An early interest in drawing inspired by her artist grandmother evolved into a quest for expression in a variety of media including painting in oil, watercolours and pastel, as well as forays into the production of sculpture using various materials. This drive has also lead her to work in theatre as a props builder and designer. She has had formal training at Hereford College of Art, Ontario College of Art, Sault College, as well as part time studies at the University of Western Ontario, plus numerous workshops.
Involvement in community affairs has always been important to Morag: she is on the WBCA board, past boardmember of the FCG and TAP (London). Was a founding member of the Elliot Lake Arts Council, is past-president of the Burlington Fine Arts Guild, and has been involved with Fringe Nord, SCARF and the International Children's Festival in Sudbury. She is presently a member of The Street Painting Society, Canadian Portrait Artist Society and IATSE.