Margaret Nancy Chisholm Magee Donnelly

Margaret Nancy Chisholm Magee Donnelly

It is with great sadness that the family announces the passing of Nancy Donnelly on November 28, 2022, at the age of 100. Nancy will be lovingly remembered by son Michael Donnelly (Joanne); daughter Margaret Amyot (Alan); granddaughters Sarah Amyot (Mitchell), Erin Donnelly, Lisa Gibson (Kris) and Anna Donnelly; grandsons Sam Donnelly, Michael Amyot (Kristen) and Joe Donnelly; and great-grandchildren Louis, Evie, Jayden, Kaitlyn and Bradlee. She was predeceased by Murray, her husband of 60 years, in 2006.

Nancy was born in Toronto on February 15, 1922, to Malcolm Magee and Alice Chisholm. Her childhood was spent in Toronto and Aurora, with summers at Robinsdale on the Lake of Bays, Algonquin Park. It was there she became an accomplished canoeist and developed a passion for the lakes and forests of the Canadian Shield, the same landscape that years earlier had inspired Tom Tompson and the Group of Seven.

After earning her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto’s Trinity College in 1944, Nancy moved to Ottawa to work at the National Film Board. She often spoke about that time in her life and how she so enjoyed working in such a creative field with talented and inspiring people. She particularly admired animation director Norman McLaren, also a noted artist and printmaker.

Nancy met her future husband during her time at the NFB. A native Nova Scotian, Murray was pursuing a Masters (and subsequently a PhD) in Political Science. They married in 1946 and spent their honeymoon hiking the Appalachian Trail, an adventure Nancy immortalized in a series of hilarious cartoon sketches in ink and watercolour.

The pair moved west in 1948 when Murray was offered a one-year term as a lecturer at the University of Saskatchewan. The following year they settled in Winnipeg, where he taught in the University of Manitoba’s Department of Political Studies for nearly four decades. Both loved the vibrancy of the university community, through which they made many lifelong friendships.

The Donnellys purchased their first home in Winnipeg’s Riverview area, where Michael and Margaret were born (1950 and 1953); Nancy stayed at home caring for the children, all the while expanding her keen interest in art and painting. It was during Murray’s year as a visiting fellow at St Antony’s College, Oxford University, that she began to seriously pursue her artistic interests. While the kids were in school, she would drive out to the English countryside and sketch or paint for hours.

Upon the family’s return to Winnipeg, Nancy was instrumental in establishing the Forum Art Institute in the 1960s. The Forum was a place where artists could gather and share their ideas, opinions and work. She studied under noted artist Nik Bjelajac and was greatly influenced by him. An active member of the Forum until well into her nineties, Nancy was also a founding member of the cooperative Medea Gallery, which endured for decades in Osborne Village. She sold many of her works there and for a time shared studio space with other artists in Osborne Village and in the Exchange District. Preferring to work in watercolours or in acrylics on large canvases, Nancy also produced works with a variety of printmaking techniques, including woodcuts, linocuts, etching and engraving/intaglio. Her art took her to workshops all over North America. In turn, her travels – including a trip around the world with Murray in the mid-1970s – provided a lifetime of rich inspiration for her artworks.

Nancy and Murray’s love of the outdoors led to the purchase of a rustic cottage at Spruce Lake in Northwestern Ontario, in 1972. The cottage served as a base for years of canoe adventures – with paddle and picnic in hand they would set out in the Grumman canoe and they explored many, many lakes in that area. Catastrophe Lake was a particular favorite. The cottage became a cherished gathering place for family and friends, where many happy times were enjoyed.

Nancy’s children and grandchildren describe her as “unconventional” and “not your typical grandmother.” She leaves us with wonderful memories of raucous games of backyard croquet, special handpicked gifts, competitive games of Pictionary, and long phone calls filled with laughter. An avid reader, she loved The New Yorker, eagerly anticipated the arrival of the Saturday New York Times crossword and relished a good argument. She had a soft spot for Golden Retrievers and butter tarts. At 100 years old she used email, Facebook and Netflix regularly, and she lived independently in her own home until this past July. Nancy will be remembered as someone who lived a fulfilling and interesting life, on her own terms. She will be missed.

There will be no service; the family will gather at a later date to honour and celebrate our mother, grandmother and great-grandmother.

Donations may be made to Doctors Without Borders, a favourite charity.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.thomsoninthepark.com for the Donnelly family.