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A true Weyburn art mystery: who created these works?

The identity of who created two works in the City of Weyburn’s Permament Art Collection remains a mystery.

WEYBURN - The identity of who created two works in the City of Weyburn’s Permament Art Collection remains a mystery, in spite of the images being circulated throughout the province.

The two works include a painting of Tommy Douglas, former premier of Saskatchewan, and an old drawing of a man from the early 1900s.

Both works are currently on display at the Weyburn Art Gallery, on the upper level.

The Douglas painting is signed only “Robin”, and there are no records of who created it or when it became part of the Permanent Art Collection.

It was found in 2020 by photographer Christopher Borshowa, as he had been commissioned to photograph each of the pieces of the collection.

The painting was rolled up on top of a pile of art works, and he and curator Regan Lanning took it down to unroll it.

A CTV News crew did a piece on the mystery art work, and since it was broadcast, Lanning said she had a couple of calls, but neither one panned out.

She checked on artists with “Robin” in their names, first or last, and has not been able to find the artist who did this painting.

Apparently the painting hung outside of the T.C. Douglas Centre when the former Calvary Baptist Church building was moved up to South Hill, to its current location.

Lanning said she’s talked to many long-time artists and residents to find out if anyone remembers who provided the painting, and so far has drawn a blank.

As for the old drawing, which is in an ornate frame, Lanning noted that due to the way it’s framed, she cannot separate it from the frame, and again there is no information provided as to the artist’s name or how it ended up in the art collection.

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