Two Ottawa institutions celebrate the art and scientific work of Faith Fyles

For decades, the work of Faith Fyles, a scientific artist based in Ottawa, quietly shaped Canada’s agricultural science. Now, in a partnership between Ingenium – Canada’s Museums of Science and Innovation and the Ottawa Art Gallery (OAG), Faith Fyles: In Full Bloom brings renewed attention to Canada’s first woman botanist and a pioneering scientific artist whose career was rooted at Ottawa’s Central Experimental Farm.

Arriving at the Farm in 1910 as a seed analyst, Fyles became the first woman in Canada’s Civil Service to hold a scientific position when she was promoted to assistant botanist. At a time when few women were permitted to pursue scientific careers, she conducted fieldwork across the country—often travelling alone—collecting and identifying hundreds of plant specimens for the National Herbarium. Her research ranged from poisonous plants affecting farming to germination experiments on wild rice along the Rideau River, where she identified and named a previously undocumented fungus species.

In 1920, Fyles broke new ground again when she became the first artist appointed to the Central Experimental Farm’s Horticulture Division. There, she produced hundreds of meticulous paintings of apples, berries, and other plant varieties developed in Ottawa’s experimental orchards. These works were not merely decorative illustrations; they were scientific tools, recording colour, form, and internal structure with precision so that new varieties could be studied, promoted, and shared with growers across the country. Today, her paintings form an extraordinary visual archive of Canadian agricultural innovation.

Educated at McGill University under the mentorship of trailblazing botanist Carrie Derick, and having studied art in Paris and London, Fyles uniquely bridged scientific rigour and artistic skills. Her career unfolded during a period of rapid agricultural expansion in Canada, and her contributions helped shape both the scientific record and the visual culture of that era.

Faith Fyles: In Full Bloom not only revisits this remarkable Ottawa story but also places it in conversation with contemporary artists who expand and reinterpret her legacy.  Our next story will explore how their works explore themes of land, knowledge, and care for the natural world, reminding us that the relationship between art and science remains as vital today as it was in Fyles’ time.

This exhibition is a unique collaboration between the Ottawa Art Gallery and Ingenium-Canada’s Museums of Science and Innovation. Drawing on Ingenium’s large horticultural art and artefacts collection, the exhibition team launched a research project that has shed new light on Faith Fyles’s life and career, and uncovered previously undocumented works.

Faith Fyles: In Full Bloom is sponsored by the Ingenium Foundation and Farm Boy.