Elza Edith Mayhew

BYDealers Auction House Biography and Notes

Canadian sculptor Elza Mayhew (1916-2004) was known for her abstract bronze sculptures, many large scale, that were described by Colin Graham of the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria in 2016 as "modern in concept yet having affinities wit the past, with totemic poles, Mayan stelae, Egyptian stone sculpture and other hieratic forms." The base of plexiglass and wood is 6 x 6 x 2 inches. Born in Victoria, BC, Mayhew received a BA from the University of British Columbia in 1937 and an MFA from the University of Oregon in 1963. Active from the mid-1950s through the 1980s, Mayhew produced commissioned work for Expo 67, Expo 86, the Bank of Canada, the University of Victoria, the Canadian National Capital Commission and the Royal British Columbia Museum. Her work is included in the collections of the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, the National Gallery of Canada, Simon Fraser University and the Confederation Centre Art Gallery in Charlottetown. In 1964, with Harold Town, Mayhew represented Canada at the Venice Biennale.