Donald William Buchanan

Donald William Buchanan, (b at Lethbridge, Alta, 9 Apr 1908; d at Ottawa 28 Feb 1966). He was the son of Senator W.A. Buchanan, publisher of the Lethbridge Herald, and received a degree in modern history from University of Toronto as well as an Oxford fellowship. Serious illness caused severe hearing loss, which perhaps increased his interest in visual communication. In the 1930s, he was one of the founders of the Ottawa Times, a spirited weekly challenging staid cultural and political mores.

He played a key role in founding the NATIONAL FILM BOARD (NFB), persuading W.L.M. King to invite John GRIERSON to Canada. He was founder of the National Film Society (1935; now the Canadian Film Institute), director of talks and public affairs for the Canadian Radio Commission (now CBC) from 1937 to 1940. In 1940 he joined the NFB as director of special projects, where he built the most extensive nontheatrical distribution among allied nations.

He was director of photo and graphics division, NFB; member of the WARTIME INFORMATION BOARD staff; 1942 editor of Canadian Art Magazine (1942); joined the National Gallery staff (1947); and founded the Industrial Design Council where "passion for the enhancement of the quality of life led him to introduce two comparative strangers, the Canadian designer and the Canadian manufacturer."

In 1960 he retired as associate director of the National Gallery and took up photography, holding successful shows in Canada and abroad. His photographs showed gentle humour and strong dramatic sense. He was killed in a car accident while arranging for the international art exhibit for Expo 67. Though reserved and reflective in manner, he was regarded by many as the most significant Canadian of his time. His personal art collection has been presented to the art gallery in his birthplace, Lethbridge, Alberta.

Author JUDITH CRAWLEY

0
0
Absolutely free, with over 40,000 articles in French and English, The Canadian Encyclopedia is the ultimate online resource for all things Canadian, from history, sports, arts, science, technology, and much, much more. Get started at www.TheCanadianEncyclopedia.com
Feature Articles
The Formation of the RCMP

The Dominion government's advertisement asked for volunteers "able to read and write either the English or French language" with "good antecedents" who were good horsemen...

INSIDE TCE

Gallery
Browse the rich visual resources of The Canadian Encyclopedia through thematic galleries of Canadian Art, History, Nature, People, and Science and Technology.
Interactive Resources
Illustrations, lively text, animations, sounds and games help make learning about Canadian history, art, geography, architecture and other topics entertaining as well as informative.
Canucklehead
The ultimate test of your knowledge of Canada, trivial and otherwise. You can choose from more than 60 dynamic quizzes with visual or text clues. Your scores depend on the speed with which you answer and the number of clues you need. Results are sent to you by email and high scores are posted on the site.
Timeline
This unique resource includes more than 6000 events from Canadian and world history. It can be searched by era, subject, keyword or date. To find out what happened on your birthday, select the month and day of your birth.
100 Greatest Events
This selection of the 100 "greatest" events in Canadian history was made by editor in chief James H. Marsh to draw attention to events that have left an indelible memory in the minds of later generations.