Fonds LA.SC107 - Jules Wegman collection

Identity area

Reference code

LA.SC107

Title

Jules Wegman collection

Date(s)

  • 1865-1867 (Creation)

Level of description

Fonds

Extent and medium

45 drawings on paper

Context area

Name of creator

(1865-1931)

Biographical history

Jules Frederic Wegman was a Swiss-born architect who practiced in Canada at the firm of Darling and Pearson from 1905 until his death in 1931. Born in Neuchatel, he immigrated to Chicago at the age of 10 with his architect father, who undertook his training. At one point he was sent to Jerusalem to measure the city and its buildings, and his drawings were used to reproduce the city at the Worlds’ Fair at St. Louis in 1904. He spent several years at the Chicago firm of D.H. Burnham before moving to Toronto to join Darling and Pearson, where he became a partner in 1924. He worked on the Sun Life Building in Montreal, the North Toronto Station at Yonge and Summerhill, and the 1925 expansion of the Art Gallery of Toronto. He spoke at least four languages fluently and traveled widely, collecting photographs and drawings of architectural details. In 1911 he joined the Arts and Letters Club and lunched there regularly. In 1912 he was Chairman of the Toronto Chapter of the Ontario Association of Architects and he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada shortly before his death.

Archival history

The drawings were likely acquired with a gift of architectural books by George Curry in 1936-1937. There is no specific mention of the drawings in the accession record.

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer

Source of acquisition is uncertain.

Content and structure area

Scope and content

The collection consists of 45 architectural drawings in ink and wash, comprising elevations and details of major Italian and German churches, probably drawn as student projects.

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling

Accruals

No further accruals are expected.

System of arrangement

Conditions of access and use area

Conditions governing access

Open. Access to Special Collections is by appointment only. Please contact the reference desk for more information.

Conditions governing reproduction

Material in this collection is in the public domain. Permission of the Art Gallery of Ontario is required for publication.

Language of material

Script of material

Language and script notes

Physical characteristics and technical requirements

Allied materials area

Existence and location of originals

Existence and location of copies

Related units of description

The institutional files of the Art Gallery of Ontario contain blueprints of the 1925 expansion for the Art Gallery of Toronto, signed by Jules Wegman. See the library staff for more information.

Related descriptions

Notes area

Note

Drawings are labelled in German.

Note

The collection has been arranged by the archivist in one series, chronologically, with undated drawings at the end. The drawings were titled and dated by the artist.

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Description control area

Description identifier

Institution identifier

Rules and/or conventions used

Status

Level of detail

Dates of creation revision deletion

Language(s)

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Sources

Archivist's note

Prepared by Sylvia Lassam, 2006. Uploaded and adapted by Nirvana Chainani,2019

Accession area

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