O-638

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painting (portrait)

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The Right Honourable Louis Stephen St. Laurent

Portrait of Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent

Louis St. Laurent was born in 1882 in the Eastern Townships of Quebec. Remarkably, he entered politics at age his 59, and still managed to change Canada.

He built the Trans-Canada Highway, the St. Lawrence Seaway and the Trans-Canada Pipeline. He expanded the population with increased immigration, expanded the borders by bringing in Newfoundland, and expanded Canada’s international role by helping to create United Nations’ peacekeeping force, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). He also greatly expanded Canada’s social programs.

Audrey Watts McNaughton’s portrait captures the energy, determination, and amiability of St. Laurent, as he stands tall inside the Parliament building.

Audrey McNaughton Dalglish (nee Watts)

Audrey McNaughton Dalglish (nee Watts), born in 1917, was the first woman to paint an official portrait of a Canadian Prime Minister. She studied art in Toronto and London, England, and graduated from Bishop's University in Quebec in 1955, three years before she was commissioned for the official portrait of Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent. It may be her best-known single work, though she was also known for pastel and charcoal portraits of domestic animals. Her 2010 obituary described her as having had “the confidence and sense of purpose to bridge many non-traditional roles for women,” including having become a pilot.