Memorable Manitobans: Hubert A. Garnier (1903-1987)

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Hubert Garnier
with his sculpture of
Louise Riel

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Sculptor.

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A youthful
Hubert Garnier

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Born at Chasseneuil, France in 1903, son of composer and violinist Emile Garnier (?-?) and Marie Theresa Garnier (1880-1981), he came to St. Boniface with his family in 1913 and attended Provencher School.

He studied art at the Winnipeg School of Art, Civic Art Institute in Chicago, and the University of British Columbia. Before returning to Winnipeg, he apprenticed in 1923 and 1924 with artists in Paris, New York, and Chicago, including Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor who directed the carving of Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. In 1932-1934, he studied anatomy at Vancouver under artist Charles Marega during a night course given to medical students at the University of British Columbia.

Garnier worked in a variety of media, including stone, metal, and brick. One of his specialities was crests and other official emblems. An exposition of his architectural sculptures was presented in 1976 at the Franco-Manitoban Cultural Centre. His work is displayed around Canada.

In 1942, he married singer Rolande Rozière and they had a daughter.

He died at his Winnipeg home, 127 Bank Avenue, on 27 February 1987.

Some of his sculptural works in Manitoba included:

Sculpture

Location

Year

Status

Bank of Montreal Building (carvings)

426 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg

1927

 

Tier Building (University crest for façade)

173 Dafoe Road, Winnipeg

1931

 

Winnipeg Auditorium (medallions and volutes)

200 Vaughan Street, Winnipeg

1932

 

Belgian Veterans Association Historical War Memorial

407 Provencher Boulevard, Winnipeg

1938

 

Sts. Vladimir and Olga Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral (relief of saints and exterior volutes)

115 McGregor Street, Winnipeg

1946-1947

 

Shaarey Zedek Synagogue (tabernacle doors)

561 Wellington Crescent, Winnipeg

1950

 

Altar

Richer, RM of Ste. Anne

?

 

Bank of Toronto Building (ten entrance reliefs)

215 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg

1951

Demolished (1990)

Ukrainian Settlers Plaque

450 Broadway, Winnipeg

1951

 

St. James Collegiate (two entrance panels)

1900 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg

1951-1952

 

Berens River Accident Plaque

450 Broadway, Winnipeg

1952

 

Provencher Monument

Avenue de la Cathedrale, Winnipeg

1953

 

Rosh Pine Synagogue (tree relief)

123 Matheson Avenue East, Winnipeg

1954

 

Winnipeg City Hall (city crest)

510 Main Street, Winnipeg

1964

 

Sources:

Obituary [Marie Therese Garnier], Winnipeg Free Press, 27 July 1981, page 32.

“Well-known city sculptor Hubert Garnier dies at 83,” Winnipeg Free Press, 5 March 1987, page 36.

Belgian War Memorial, City of Winnipeg Historical Buildings Committee, January 1995.

Obituary [Marie Jeanne Dacquay], Winnipeg Free Press, 11 December 2002, page 41.

We thank Jennifer Doyle and Norman Gould for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 8 June 2023

Memorable Manitobans

Memorable Manitobans

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