Anna P. Baker - Artwork

Artwork

Anna's painting High Frequency Ping won the first prize in the 59th annual exhibition by artists of Chicago and vicinity in 1956, and was reported in Time Magazine.

Anna’s memories around her home town, London, Ontario are transcribed into an earlier time frame in such works as: "London Airport - 1910", “Elmwood Bowling Green”, “The Victoria Jane”, “Tennis”, “Baseball Game”, “Orangeman’s Parade”, “With Mutes and Plumes” and “The Garden Party”.

The Shakespearean series was inspired by a visit to the Stratford Festival Theatre in Stratford, Ontario in the mid-1960s. "Festival", “Richard III”, “Henry V”, “Malvolio” and “Taming of the Shrew” are the titles of some of the paintings from this series. Help was received from a Canada Council Grant, 1968.

Loving theatre, Anna delved into the Ambrose Small story. Ambrose was the proprietor of the Grand Theatre (now Theatre London) who disappeared Dec 2, 1919 after selling his theatrical holdings, leaving his wife, $2 million and a legal tangle. His legend has inspired many words and the continuing rumour that his ghost haunts Theatre London. Anna envisioned productions as they might have been in the time of Small. Twenty-four paintings were exhibited at the Nancy Poole Studio including "Ambrose Small Production of Rose Marie", “Ambrose Small; Production of the Dumbells", “An Ambrose Small Production of Polly of the Circus” in which Ambrose is depicted floating over the top of the production, “Ambrose Small Production of Uncle Tom’s Cabin" and “Ladies of the Chorus”.

There are two series of paintings and drawings from the book, “Cranford” by Elizabeth Gaskell. In the last series of 13 paintings, the titles included "The Cat that Swallowed the Lace", “He Knew Cream Quite Well and Constantly Refused Tea With Only Milk in It”, and “If the Supposed Robbers Would Come to Him He would Fight Them”, “Our Idea of the Dignity of Silence was Paling Before our Curiosity”, “She Did Not Seem to Notice the Extraordinary Size and Complexity of Her Headdress”.

Illustrating her interest in history, Anna created her lithograph "The Trojan Horse" while still at the Art Institute in Chicago.

Anna painted 18 paintings in which she visualized the French realist painter and sculptor, Rosa Bonheur, on imaginary world travels. “The Ascension of Rosa Bonheur Over Niagara Falls”, “Rosa Bonheur in Venice”, “Rosa Bonheur is Late for the Ambassador’s Ball” are a few from this series. These were exhibited at the Howell Gallery in London, Canada. Anna felt very much akin to Rosa whose whole life was Art. Anna often signed her letters, “Rosa Bonheur of the Northeast Kingdom”, the Northeast Kingdom being northeast Vermont. This was put on her tombstone in Scottsville, Ontario.

Anna painted or sketched owls throughout her career; the Holstein cow or cows were her signature cartoons for the Chronicle newspaper in Barton, Vermont.

Anna also did a series on Circus Parade which included such works as: "Circus Wagon with Lion", "Circus Wagon with Bears", “Circus Wagon with Mermaid”, “Circus Parade with Walrus”, “Circus Wagon with Alligator”, “Marching Circus Band” and “Circus Wagons with Monkeys and Giraffes”.