June 27 – July 18, 1993

Maltwood Art Museum and Gallery

In 1964 the University of Victoria received the John and Katherine Maltwood bequest: a fine and decorative arts collection of over 100 items. This varied collection consisting of paintings, sculpture, artifacts, books and personal archives is often described as “documenting the tastes and travels” of the Maltwoods.

That the Maltwoods travelled extensively in the period 1900-1940 is well know. However, the details as to where and when is a matter largely, of conjecture.

This exhibit attempts to reconstruct their itineraries. Intellectually, this is based on evidence drawn from the extensive Maltwood library of antiquarian travel guides. Some evidence of the geography of their journeys can be gleaned from the small collection of site souvenirs. Their general interest in the ancient monuments and cultures of Mediterranean Europe, the Levant and the Far East can be illustrate by a sampling of the Maltwood Collection itself.

Together, the evidence of these itinerant interests draws together the themes of Katherine’s own work as an artist, also her fascination with world cosmology and research into the Glastonbury legends.