Born in England, Watts, an artist, architect, and civil servant, immigrated to Canada in 1873. He worked as a draftsman for the Department of Public Works in Ottawa and later as an architect, designing grand residences in the city. As an accomplished etcher, Watts played an important role in the Etching Revival movement in the late nineteenth century. He would become the first curator of the National Gallery of Canada.

A central figure in contemporary Canadian art, Wieland engaged with painting, filmmaking, and cloth and plastic assemblage to explore with wit and passion ideas related to gender, national identity, and the natural world. In 1971 she became the first living Canadian woman artist to have a solo exhibition at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa. (See Joyce Wieland: Life & Work by Johanne Sloan.)

A prolific printmaker, painter, and multimedia artist whose work reflects an abiding interest in the natural world. Wyse immigrated to Canada in 1961 and settled in Cape Dorset, where he taught engraving. He moved to Ontario in 1964 and currently lives in Ottawa.