March Into Her Story: Celebrating the Women Who Shape Oshawa
- Will McGuirk
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
Although the month of March is about birth, rebirth, about earth bringing forth new life, March is oddly named for Mars, the god of war, and not Venus, the goddess of love. It's all Greek to me, but anyway to balance it out, the International Women’s Day is on Sunday March 8 this 2026. That seems appropriate.
International Women’s Day would be a good day, then, to visit the heritage of one of Oshawa’s extraordinary women, Alexandra Luke, a painter, and member of Painters 11, the first abstract painters group in Ontario. Luke became a member of the McLaughlin family, when she married Ewart. The couple founded the public art gallery to house their extensive collection of art, including Painters 11. The gallery was named for Ewart’s grandfather Robert McLaughlin, but is usually shortened to the RMG.
Alexandra Luke championed a cadre of Toronto based abstract painters, that era’s outsiders and innovators, some might say punks! Luke would host salons at her cottage in Thickson Point on the Oshawa/Whitby border and organized exhibitions.
Luke’s donated collection became the basis for the Gallery’s Permanent Collection. Themed exhibits using work from that collection are regularly organized. Currently the exhibit ‘Homage’ draws from the Collection those works which explore how an artist pays homage to individuals, pivotal events, and shared experiences. One to look for in ‘Homage’ is local artist Jane Eccles ‘Margaret’s Dress’ which is a painting of a dress worn by Margaret Atwood. Eccles is one of many female artists who walked through the doors opened by Luke. Another local artist of note is Dani Crosby whose massive mural, a homage in itself to the city’s mill, can be seen on the side of a building a block north of the RMG.
Oshawa is also home to one of the few female owned and operated theatres in the country. Diana Kedvesney runs the Biltmore Theatre downtown Oshawa and on March 8 the theatre will host the Emerging Songwriters Showcase featuring up-and-coming talent from the area, all presented in the intimacy of the Mezzanine. On this occasion Carrie Matisse, Flo Olavarria, Noah Hughes, and Janest Isabell are the focus.
The Biltmore is one of three large theatres downtown and they all have many exciting events throughout the month of March. The Regent has a run of dates which surely demands an overnight stay; the captain of yacht rock Chris De Burgh is coming in for two dates, Friday March 13 and 16, while on March 14 Canadian musician David Wilcox will be in. Comedian Jeremy Holtz takes the stage March 15. Take all of those dates as practice for St Patrick’s Day which of course will be on a Tuesday this year. The Biltmore has Codefendants, with Chuck Coles, and Thesis Sahib.
Bond St Events Centre has a great run of shows as well with 90s Cancon rockers The Watchmen making a rare appearance March 27, Cone of international punk act Sum41 is DJing at the TwoTwoTwo (located in the basement of Bond St) on March 20 and the very unique stylings of Hamilton’s BA Johnston on the Main Stage the same evening.
So this month take heed of all the great women in your life and pay attention too to the great women who have had such an important impact on the great City of Oshawa, and those who continue to do so.
And you know what they say. . . March into April and it May be June sooner than you think.
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