Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation

The Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation was created in 1955 by Charles Glass Greenshields, Q.C., a distinguished Montreal lawyer and amateur artist, in memory of his mother, Elizabeth. Mr. Greenshields firmly believed that discipline, hard work and serious training in the traditional means of artistic expression were fundamental to the growth and development of the artist. His determination to help dedicated young artists and students pursue the mastery of the traditional techniques and workmanship in painting and sculpture prompted him to establish and endow a foundation for this purpose. To date, the Foundation has provided financial assistance to more than 2000 students and artists from 80 countries. Mr. Greenshields personally directed the Foundation that he created for the first 13 years of its existence and remained active in its organization until his death, in 1974. His vision and his mission live on through the foundation that he so generously endowed. In recognition of its unwavering commitment to supporting students and emerging artists in representational art since 1955, the Foundation was awarded the Excellence in Fine Art Education Award from the Portrait Society of America in 2016 and the Gari Melchers Memorial Medal from the Artists' Fellowship in 2021. Mr. Greenshields directed that the funds of the Foundation be used to help young artists acquire the necessary training, skills and competence in the traditional artistic methods, specifically excluding all grants to those “who show clearly a disposition to use the purely abstract or non-objective method in their work.” The philosophy outlined by Mr. Greenshields in his endowment has informed the mission of the Foundation over the previous 68 years and it continues to do so to this day. The Foundation provides financial assistance, by way of grants, to young artists who are pursuing their studies or are in the early stage of their career, are working in a representational style of painting, drawing, sculpture or printmaking, and demonstrate the determination and talent to pursue a lifetime career in their art practice.The Foundation does not provide funding for the pursuit of abstract or non-objective art.