W. W. Alexander

William Walker Alexander (1869-1948) CPE

William Walker Alexander was born in Toronto in 1869. He studied at the Central Ontario School of Art (now OCAD), the Toronto Art Students’ League, and privately with George Agnew Reid. Alexander continued his studies at the Philadelphia Art Students League under Thomas Eakins. He worked as an etcher, engraver, and designer for Alexander & Cable Lithographing Co. (Toronto)—one of the pioneer lithography and engraving companies in Canada—eventually becoming vice-president. As an authority on the history of coats of arms and crests, Alexander helped established a high reputation for the firm. In 1886, Alexander became a founder-member of the Toronto Art Students League, a predecessor to the Group of Seven. Later he became a co-founder with W.J. Thomson of the Society of Canadian Painter-Etchers (CPE) and a founder-member of the Mahlstick Club in 1899. Noted Canadian author William Colgate described his style as "showing confident craftsmanship,” and reproduced his ink drawing ‘a French Canadian Village School’ in his famous work on Canadian art history: Canadian Art: Its Origins and Development. 1820-1940. This drawing also appeared in the Toronto Art League Calendar of 1901. During his career, Alexander worked primarily as a printmaker, bookplate designer, and watercolourist. He died in 1948 in Toronto. 

Sources: Oko, Andrew J. The Society of Canadian Painter-Etchers and Engravers in Retrospect. Hamilton: Art Gallery of Hamilton, 1981; MacDonald, Colin S. A Dictionary of Canadian Artists. Volume 1.