Kay Mais
1912 - 2009
Born in Surrey, England, Kathleen M. “Kay” Mais likely received her passion for art creation from her mother, Kate Mayston, who held an Art Master Certificate from Great Yarmouth College in Norkfolk, ENG. Mais herself studied at the Dover & Folkestone Schools of Art in Kent, ENG. During World War II, she worked for four years for the Censorship Department of the Ministry of Information, first in Liverpool, ENG and then in Trinidad, Tobago where she was a charter member of the Port of Spain Art Club in Trinidad. Returning to England, she became a member of the Darlington Society of Arts in Durham (1950 – 1958).
After moving to Canada, she trained in portraiture at the Faculty of Extension of the University of Alberta, and joined the Edmonton Art Club (1958) for which she was president (1966 – 1967). While living in Edmonton, Mais attended watercolour courses in Salt Lake City, UT.
Although she also employed oils and acrylics, Mais painted primarily in watercolours and used pastels for portraits. She developed a reputation as a formidable and quick portrait artist. According to Rosemary Rees, “She sketched Tommy Banks on one of his TV shows and it was used for a season before each commercial break…. [The] Stony Plain Chamber of Commerce [commissioned her] to do a quick portrait of Lieutenant Governor J.W. Grant MacEwan [for] a special dinner where Kay was also a guest. She laughs when she recalls having to phone Dr. MacEwan to ask if she could call at his home to have a look at his ear, as she had been having trouble with the drawing. ‘Horse’s ears are much nicer-looking that human ears,’ he told her.”
In addition to mounting a solo exhibition at the Stanley Milner Library in 1971, Mais participated in several group shows there and at the Walterdale Gallery. Her works abide in private collections in Canada, the U.S., England, Australia, and Hong Kong.
After moving to Canada, she trained in portraiture at the Faculty of Extension of the University of Alberta, and joined the Edmonton Art Club (1958) for which she was president (1966 – 1967). While living in Edmonton, Mais attended watercolour courses in Salt Lake City, UT.
Although she also employed oils and acrylics, Mais painted primarily in watercolours and used pastels for portraits. She developed a reputation as a formidable and quick portrait artist. According to Rosemary Rees, “She sketched Tommy Banks on one of his TV shows and it was used for a season before each commercial break…. [The] Stony Plain Chamber of Commerce [commissioned her] to do a quick portrait of Lieutenant Governor J.W. Grant MacEwan [for] a special dinner where Kay was also a guest. She laughs when she recalls having to phone Dr. MacEwan to ask if she could call at his home to have a look at his ear, as she had been having trouble with the drawing. ‘Horse’s ears are much nicer-looking that human ears,’ he told her.”
In addition to mounting a solo exhibition at the Stanley Milner Library in 1971, Mais participated in several group shows there and at the Walterdale Gallery. Her works abide in private collections in Canada, the U.S., England, Australia, and Hong Kong.