About Homer Watson House & Gallery

Vision

The vision of Homer Watson House & Gallery is to preserve and celebrate the legacy of Homer Watson’s creative spirit by stimulating the appreciation, enjoyment and practice of the visual arts.

Mission

Homer Watson House & Gallery will fulfill its mission by engaging in a three-part program of:

  • Preservation and collection of Homer Watson’s art, his home studio and gallery and the heritage of his life, his times and that of Phoebe Watson and the Doon School of Fine Arts.
  • Exhibition of Homer Watson’s body of work and regular shows of contemporary local and regional artists.
  • Education and enrichment through events and instructional programs in the visual arts.

Values

  • Inspire creativity, knowledge and ideas through art.  
  • Celebrate diversity and inclusivity in our activities and working practices.
  • Recognize the inherent value of the natural environment.
  • Improve accessibility.
  • Operate in a fiscally responsible way to ensure long term sustainability of the organization.
  • Develop meaningful relationships within our region and the broader arts community.

Our Staff

  • Cathy Masterson – Director & Curator
  • Tanner Van Vliet – Education and Public Programs Coordinator
  • Ralf Wall – Graphic Designer & Retail Coordinator
  • Allison Taylor – Historic Collections Officer
  • Katie Pearson – Community Fundraising & Events Coordinator
  • Emilie McNamara – Education Assistant
  • Janet Mayhew – Bookkeeper

Our Board

  • Karen Bulman – Chair
  • Colleen Bulla – Secretary
  • Shelley Wickenheiser – Treasurer
  • Chetna Chavvada – Director
  • Elaine Seeley – Director
  • Paige Bromby – Director
  • Christine Michaud – Appointed by City of Kitchener
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The Loch Doon area was memorialized in celebrated Scottish poet, Robert Burns piece “Ye banks and braes O’ bonnie Doon”

Ye banks and braes o’ bonny Doon,
How can ye bloom sae fresh and fair?
How can ye chant, ye little birds,
And I sae weary fu’ o’ care?
Thou’lt break my heart, thou warbling bird,
That wantons thro’ the flowering thorn:
Thou minds me o’ departed joys,
Departed, never to return.

Aft hae I rov’d by bonnie Doon,
To see the rose and woodbine twine;
And ilka bird sang o’ its love,
And fondly sae did I o’ mine.
Wi’ lightsome heart I pu’d a rose,
Fu’ sweet upon its thorny tree;
And my fause lover stole my rose,
But, ah! he left the thorn wi’ me.

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