Abstract

This thesis addresses selected "Cape Breton" works by the American artist June Leaf within the context of identity, and contemporary theories of landscape imagery. As a person "from away," Leaf's works from 1970 to 1990 speak of her displacement and relocation and of her particular relationship with the isolated community in her adopted country. The works are divided into two categories: "A Place" and "The Place." "A Place" refers to an ambiguous landscape which acts as an allegorical site for Leaf's biographical narrative, and "The Place" which are the works that specifically refer to the topography and geography of Cape Breton, in particular Mabou Mines, where a reference can be made to the historical and social context of its people. The content of her images through its reference to "A Place" and "The Place" have been positioned in relation to the ideas of "from away"/ "from here." Chapter I is a biography of Leaf's life and an exposition of selected examples of her work before coming to Cape Breton. Chapter II is an historical overview of the island and provides a framework for the community in which Leaf lives and works. Chapter III discusses Leaf's images within the context of a personal myth in relation to issues of identity when she settled in Mabou Mines. Chapter IV examines a group of paintings that address landscape in relation to the specific space and place of Cape Breton. The concluding chapter presents a summary of the arguments that I have brought forward and a synopsis of Leaf's later work from 1990 to the present