Title

Guardian II

Artist

Mayhew, Elza

Date

1963

Medium

bronze

Type

sculpture

Owner

SFU Art Collection

Accession Number

NA

Location

Simon Fraser University

Category

SFU Art Collection

Collection

Public Art

Lat/Long

49.278598,-122.915520

View in Google Maps

http://www.google.com/maps?q=49.278598,-122.915520

Mayhew’s “Janus sculpture, with two fronts”, entitled Guardian II, exhibited at Venice Biennale in 1964, as well as the Federation of Canadian Artists 1967 Centennial, before Rothmans of Pall Mall purchased the sculpture and donated it to Simon Fraser University later that year. It is located outside Convocation Mall. This work is part of the Simon Fraser University Art Collection. The SFU Art Collection contains over 5,800 works. Approximately 1,000 works of art are shown throughout the campus and integrated in public, administrative and common learning spaces. A selection of the most accessible in this diverse repository are incorporated into the City of Burnaby Public Art Registry. For more extensive information about the holdings at SFU, visit: https://www.sfu.ca/galleries/Collections.html

Elza Mayhew (1916-2004) was was active as a sculptor from the mid-1950s through the 80s. Most of her work is bronze, cast in foundries in Ontario, the U.S., and England. The monumental pieces were cast at the Eugene Aluminum and Brass Foundry in Eugene, Oregon. She exhibited in many cities across Canada, and internationally, in Italy, Japan, and the U.S. Though she lived her life in Victoria and her studio was here, she travelled extensively, often to work at different foundries. At the time, there was no foundry in Canada with the capability of casting the large pieces.