FACULTY ASSOCIATES
Willowbank has an extraordinary roster of faculty associates. They include many of the top theorists and practitioners in the field and represent almost every discipline and skill. They come from the private sector, the government sector, and academia.
Willowbank’s unique blend of apprenticeship and academic styles of learning allows their talents to be used in a setting that best suits their individual strengths.
For students in the Diploma Program, and participants in the various offerings of the Centre, the faculty associates provide both immediate skill development and the opportunity for ongoing professional networking.
The following are currently teaching at Willowbank through the Diploma Program in the School of Restoration Arts, and/or the Short Courses and other offerings of the Centre for Cultural Landscape. Willowbank also draws on other members of its Board of Directors for specific projects.
Daniel Addey-Jibb, Timber Framer, has a potent love and respect for carpentry. Since early 1997 his quest for knowledge, experience and fine old tools has taken him to Europe where he worked in Scotland, England, Wales, Ireland, Romania, and Norway. He is co-owner of Hamlet Heavy Timberwork, building traditional timber frames using French carpentry techniques that date back to early medieval times. ‘We learned these techniques while serving our apprenticeships in Europe, along with a host of other complementary skills that the medieval carpenter had to master to be considered a true journeyman.’
Lori Anglin, is a cultural sites planner and architectural conservator in private practice. With hands-on project experience in diverse global regions, she works internationally with all levels of government, bilateral and multilateral agencies, NGOs and community based organizations. Her interdisciplinary skills have enabled her to take on varied responsibilities and roles, from the design of capacity building programs to strategic action plans for tourism, conservation and development. Lori obtained degrees in Canada and Australia ~ University of Waterloo, B. Env. Studies, (Urban and Regional Planning and the University of Sydney, M. Sc., (Architecture)(Conservation). Over two decades, she has lived on four continents and worked in over thirty countries, all the while realizing opportunities in the conservation profession.
Victoria Angel, Director, Federal Heritage Building Program, Parks Canada, has a BA in Art History and an MA in Heritage Conservation from Carleton. Victoria worked as a consulting historian before joining Parks Canada. She played a key role in setting up the Canadian Register of Historic Places, a joint federal / provincial / territorial initiative, and was appointed as the first Registrar. Victoria teaches at both Carleton University and the University of Victoria, and chaired a session on cultural landscape theory and practice for a recent annual conference of the US National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Kiki Aravopoulos, Easements Program Coordinator, Ontario Heritage Trust.
Danny Barber, Banker Mason, started his career in stonework at his family’s monument business working under his grandfather and father. He pursued studies in the U.K. as an Architectural Stone Carver earning his Higher National Certificate and the National Vocational Qualification Level 3 in Architectural Carving and Restoration. He has been shop foreman for RJW Stonemasons specializing in carving, lettercutting and sculpture and has over 20 years experience in stonework.
Keith Blades, Building Conservation Consultant, is known nationally and internationally as Canada’s leading expert in the area of masonry conservation. He has worked extensively on Parliament Hill and other nationally-significant sites. He has also taught at major preservation centres both in Canada and abroad. He combines an intimate understanding of both theory and practice in the field.
Lyse Blanchet, Professional Engineer, has a Master’s degree in Wood Science and Technology from Laval University and 20 years of experience in the conservation of historic structures, Lyse’s involvement focuses on the development of specialized training and R&D projects such as the ‘Modeling of Traditional Timber Joints’ and the ‘Evaluation of NDT for Wood’; the coordination of national projects such as the ‘Development and Update of the National Master Specifications in Conservation’, ‘Guidelines for the use of Mortars in Historic Structures and Buildings’ and the ‘Establishment of the Life Cycle and Risk Assessment of Historic Timber Structures’; design projects; and, lecturer and participant at International conferences on timber engineering and timber structure conservation. Lyse is Vice-President of the ICOMOS International Committee on Education and Training.
David Borbely, Blacksmith/Millwright, specializes in traditional and heritage methods for designing, reproducing and repairing ornamental and architectural iron work.
Ed Bowkett, Metals Conservator, graduated from the Art Conservation Techniques Program at Sir Sandford Fleming College in Peterborough. After being employed by the National Museum of Science and Technology, the Cumberland Museum and a private conservator, he began a private practice. During the past 12 years, Bowkett & Co. has served many institutional and private clients including the Canadian War Museum, the Canadian Conservation Institute, Public Works and Government Services Canada, Parliamentary Precinct Directorate, the Canada Science and Technology Museum, and the cities of Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto.
Meagan Brooks, Archaeological Consultant, is a graduate of Wilfrid Laurier University and the University of Saskatchewan. She is a consulting archaeologist working for Historic Horizon Inc, Fisher Archaeological Consulting and the Ontario Heritage Trust. She specializes in European historic archaeology and has worked throughout much of Ontario as well as in Saskatchewan, Bermuda and England. She has worked on provincial and national historic sites such as Saint Marie Among the Hurons, Fort Henry, Macdonell-Williamson House and Battlefield Park in Stoney Creek. She also has extensive experience in public archaeology and the analysis and management of artifact collections.
Clinton Brown, Historic Preservation Architect, is President of Clinton Brown Company Architecture/Rebuild, Buffalo NY. He specializes in the revitalization of heritage buildings and communities through project concept, planning, architectural design, and management services for renovation, rehabilitation, and historic preservation projects.
Kevin Carter, Banker Mason, did his apprenticeship as a stone mason and stone carver at Canterbury Cathedral in the U.K. Since emigrating to Canada he has worked on many significant historic properties in Toronto and elsewhere and is currently working on the Parliament Hill complex in Ottawa.
Claude Charbonneau, Special Advisor, Historic Places, Parks Canada, is the person currently responsible for the reference document Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada. Prior to joining Parks Canada, Claude worked at the House of Commons where he was Major Projects Coordinator for the buildings of the Parliamentary Precinct. Previously, Claude worked at the Heritage Conservation Directorate where he provided professional advice on a range of conservation issues and played a leading role in the development and delivery of conservation training courses to custodians of federal heritage buildings.
Jonathan Castellino, Photographer, is an urban explorer and writer, Jonathan documents urban decay in the cities he loves. Officially trained in philosophy and urban sociology, Jonathan seeks to reveal unseen space through his photography.
Cosmo Condina, Photographer, has been a professional in the field since 1985. He is known for his subtle and beautiful travel images. His photographic journeys have taken him across Canada, the U.S.A., Mexico, the Caribbean, Europe and New Zealand. On his first trip to Europe in his early twenties, Cosmo took the opportunity to visit the famous art galleries and immersed himself in the original artwork from the period of the Renaissance and the Impressionists. Those first experiences, renewed by subsequent visits to galleries and exhibitions over the years, have influenced his photography in a demonstrational graphic style. His sense of design also comes from his schooling as a graphic artist. As an associate photographer with Getty Images since 1990, and also Alamy, SuperStock, Robert Harding and Stock Connection, Cosmo’s work is licensed for commercial and editorial use worldwide. Corporations that have used his images for advertising include American Express, Visa, United Airlines, Molson’s Brewery, Ontario Savings Bonds and Fuji Film. He has published a book on Niagara-on-the-Lake, the first Capital of Upper Canada, as a bicentennial tribute. One of his current projects is a work-in-progress on Venice, Italy. These images were exhibited at the Kenan Center in upstate New York. Cosmo was one of the founding members of the Stock Artists Alliance, a professional stock photography trade organization. He is also an active member of SATW (Society of American Travel Writers). He continues to live in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada where he was born. WEBSITE: www.cosmocondina.com
Christa Deacy-Quinn, Museum Collections Manager, has a BA from SUNY-Oswego and an MA in Anthropology from the University of Illinois. Since 1991, Christa has served as the Collections Manager at the Spurlock Museum at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she specializes in collections care, artifact storage, packaging, transport, exhibit design, and Integrated Pest Management (IPM). She is a strong advocate for low-chemical, low-cost IPM solutions. She has conducted preservation-focused workshops that address IPM and has consulted with numerous institutions on developing or expanding their IPM programs. She has designed a number of databases in use at the Spurlock, including those that help staff to track the occurrence of pests within the museum and that monitor the general condition of the artifacts. She is a Certified Technician for General Use Pesticides in Illinois. Christa is active in the field of preservation, serving as a member of the Preservation Working Group at the University of Illinois and as a Peer Reviewer for the Museum Assessment Program for the American Association of Museums.
Claudine Déom, Architectural Conservator, is a professor at Université de Montréal’s School of Architecture where she has headed the Masters Program in Conservation of the Built Environment since 2007. She is currently pursuing research on the history of architecture and heritage conservation, and in particular the process of attributing heritage values to public buildings. She is involved in various conservation organizations, in particular Heritage Montreal and Heritage Canada’s Heritage Educators’ Roundtable.
Ian Ellingham, Professional Land Economist, has a BArch from Carleton, an MBA from Western, and an MPhil and PhD from Cambridge. He is a member of the Ontario Association of Architects and the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. He has worked as a development consultant for over twenty years, primarily in the area of housing. He is an Associate of Cambridge Architectural Research Limited. He has undertaken research for governments in both Canada and the UK. His book, New Generation Whole-Life Costing (Taylor & Francis, 2006) explores project decision-making using a range of techniques to deal with environments of uncertainty. He is chair of the Editorial Committee of Perspectives, the journal of the Ontario Association of Architects. A particular interest is in experiments to understand the human response to built environments.
Sean Fraser, Manager, Conservation Services Department, Ontario Heritage Trust, has a BA from the University of British Columbia, and both a degree in Architectural Design and an MA from the Technical University of Nova Scotia, now Dalhousie. His past experience includes consulting for Commonwealth Historic Resource Management Limited (Vancouver), US ICOMOS, and the Historic American Engineering Record; working as a Preservation Officer for the Toronto Historical Board, and as a Heritage Planner for the City of Toronto's Heritage Preservation Services Unit; and since 1996 as project architect for the Humayma archaeological excavations in Southern Jordan.
Cameron Forbes, Sheet Metal specialist, is Vice President of Heather & Little Limited. He did a five-year apprenticeship program in sheet metal work, including three terms at George Brown College. During one work term he was assigned to a project at the Canadian National Exposition site in Toronto. The job was restoring roofs, skylights, cornices and soffits on five of the site's heritage buildings. The work was challenging. The task was to reproduce all the metal elements to authentically replicate the original materials. By the time his apprenticeship was completed, Forbes was at the top of the class. Heather & Little Limited, a company well known for its expertise in architectural metals since 1925, was the company with whom Forbes had served his apprenticeship. Today he is vice president of the firm. Under his guidance, the company has focused on historic restoration and established a reputation for excellence and innovation throughout North America.
William German, Master Craftsmen, lives in Niagara-on-the-Lake nad is a sawyer, wood turner and furniture maker. He specializes in Niagara Peninsular inspired Furniture.
Eric Hanson, Heritage Planner, is Heritage Preservation Officer for the City of Peterborough. He oversees the identification and protection of the City's heritage resources. He also manages the City's Heritage Tax Relief Program, coordinates the work of the Municipal Heritage Committee with municipal operations, and provides technical and administrative expertise to Council, staff, and the public on issues of heritage. Erik has a personal interest in the value of heritage preservation as a mechanism for community social well-being. Prior to joining the City, Mr. Hanson spent 10 years as a consultant in the field of heritage. His projects have included site management and conservation reporting for numerous projects in eastern Ontario and the northeastern United States including Christ Church, Her Majesty's Royal Chapel to the Mohawk on the Tyendinaga reserve in Deseronto, and the Bigwin Island Resort on Lake of Bays, Dorset, Ontario. In November of 2005, Erik spent a week in New Orleans, Louisiana as a member of a damage assessment team coordinated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Michelle Hedges, Building Conservator, has a background in fine art and training as a building conservator, working for a number of years on heritage projects in Canada before completing an MSc in Architectural Materials Conservation in the United Kingdom. She remained in the UK for several years in the employment of an architectural firm specializing in the conservation of Grade 1 listed buildings where she completed projects at properties in and around London and at Oxford University. Projects have included restoration of the Radcliffe Observatory and Keble College Dining Hall at Oxford University; St George’s Bloomsbury and St Stephen’s Walbrook churches in London and Stowe Landscape Gardens, Buckinghamshire. She is currently employed by the Ontario Heritage Trust and is responsible for the development and management of capital projects at their built heritage properties. Projects have included the restoration and redevelopment of the Enoch Turner Schoolhouse in Toronto and the restoration of stained glass at Fulford Place in Brockville. She is a member of CAHP and the recently formed OAHP.
Philip V. Hoad, Historic Roofing specialist, spent his early career with the Marley Roof Tile Company in England and was subsequently transferred to their Canadian operation. Through the 1990’s he was Vice President of Roof Tile Management (RTM) and was responsible for their early work in the restoration of historic buildings. He was involved in major projects on numerous National Historic Sites, including Wolseley Barracks at CFB London, St. Anne’s Church in Toronto, Laurier House in Ottawa and Dundurn Castle in Hamilton. In 2000 Philip established Applied Roof Technology Ltd, in order to provide professional roof consulting services on heritage buildings. He spent two years on contract with Public Works and Government Services Canada at the Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site responsible for a multi-million dollar roof and masonry restoration of the King’s Bastion Barracks, which was followed by an appointment to Parks Canada as their Technical Services Coordinator. He has since held a number of other key positions in both the institutional and public sectors including Senior Project Manager at Acadia University in Wolfville and Manager, Heritage Facilities & Capital Planning for the City of Hamilton. Philip has recently returned to the private sector as President of Empire Restoration in Ontario, a well established full service construction firm that offers masonry, woodwork, roofing and sheet metal conservation and restoration services across Canada. He is also the Canadian representative for Shaws of Darwen, a UK architectural terra cotta and faience manufacturer. During his wide and varied 25 year career in built heritage, Philip has presented many seminars and served on numerous professional committees and advisory boards, including Construct Canada, CAHP, APTI and ASTM and was responsible for modifications to the Canadian National Master Specifications for Historic Slate Shingle Roofing.
John Hodson, Aboriginal Archaeologist and Cultural Consultant, is Director of the Aboriginal Centre at Brock University. John has been an advisor to Willowbank on the development of its rich cultural landscape setting, and has participated as a mentor in the development of approaches to archaeology that reflect an Aboriginal perspective.
Jacqueline Hucker, Architectural Historian, has a B.A. from Queen’s and an M.A. from Carleton. She was associated with Parks Canada for more than 20 years, where she specialized in the history of Canadian architecture, and for five years managed the Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office. She is joint author of A Guide To Canadian Architectural Styles (Broadview Press, 2nd edition 2004) and has published a number of articles on Canadian architecture. She is currently a free-lance consultant.
Paul Jacobson, Heritage Carpenter
Carol Jackson, Banker Mason
Jon Jouppien, Heritage Resource Consultant
Sandra Lawrence, Conservator, has an M.A.C. from Queen’s University and is former Chief Conservator, Art Gallery of Ontario (1986-1999). She has been a Member of the Canadian Association of Professional Conservators (CAPC) since 1982.
John Laundry, Banker Mason, trained in England at Bath, has worked extensively in Ottawa. Most recently he was lead mason for the reconstruction of the south and west walls of the estate house at Willowbank.
Francois Leblanc, Architect, is past Director of Field Projects for the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. Francois began as an architectural conservator with Parks Canada, and then became Director of the ICOMOS Secretariat in Paris. He returned to Canada to direct the Main Street Program at Heritage Canada, and was later Chief Architect for the National Capital Commission in Ottawa. He has dealt with cultural heritage issues in a national and international context throughout his career.
Lori Lemare, Decorative Painter, is a professional commercial decorative painter and teacher with experience in large scale commercial and residential surface design. Having initially studied decorative painting in Poole, England, Lori and her then partner Andrejs Ritins opened the first school for decorative painting in Canada in 1989 (Applied School for Decorative Painting and Ritins Studio Inc.) Since 2000, Le Mare has operated Lori Le Mare Studio Inc. with classes and projects held in Hamilton Ontario and around the world, including USA, China, Spain and Italy.
Jan Kamermans, Hardward, Locks and Fastenings specialist, has been salvaging vintage architecture since the 1960s. His main focus for over 20 years has been the supply and restoration of vintage hardware, with many clients both civic and private, and with projects from Queens Park to the perfect latch for your outhouse door.
Ellen Kowalchuk, Cultural Heritage Specialist, Infrastructure Ontario
Anna Kozlowski, Architectural Conservator, has a B.Sc and B.Arch, from McGill University, and a Diploma in Architectural Conservation from ICCROM. Formerly employed as a conservation architect by various federal government departments in Ottawa, she now works as a private sector Architectural Conservation Consultant. She has a particular interest in the conservation of historic interiors, founding and chairing the ICOMOS Canada Interiors Committee, 1992-1994.
Sue Maltby, Conservator, is a conservation consultant specializing in artifact treatment, training seminars, collection surveys, advice on collections care and management, and conservation guidelines for exhibits, museums and heritage structures. She earned a Master of Art Conservation specializing in artifact conservation from Queens University in 1984.
Fern MacKenzie, Consulting Architectural and Landscape Historian, has been in private practice from1994 to the present. She has provided research, analysis, writing and consultation in support of Cultural Resource Management, and her projects include consulting work for the Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office (FHBRO); Development of the Parliament Buildings: Vision and Requirements, for the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies; Archæological Survey of the Parliamentary Precinct with Parks Canada, developing a digitized survey of archæological resources in the core of Ottawa; ongoing consultation, historical background and context for decisions regarding historic features, for Heritage Conservation Program, PWGSC; Conservation Guidelines for such public buildings and sites as the Langevin Block, the Landscape of Parliament Hill, the Victoria Memorial Museum, the Supreme Court of Canada, The Public Archives and National Library Building, and the East Block. Fern is currently Senior Architectural Historian with URS Canada.
Conor MacNeill, Digital Artist/Designer, received a BDes. in Industrial Design from the University of Alberta and is also a graduate of Sheridan College's Computer Animation Program. Conor currently works as the Modeling and Lighting Lead at IBC Digital, on a wide variety of Design, Animation, and Visualization Projects. Conor has previously worked as a designer and detailer for Hadley Exhibits, where he had the opportunity to work on many high profile exhibits in some of the worlds leading Museums, Art Galleries and Zoos.
Douglas McCalla, Historian, is recently retired from the Department of History, University of Guelph, where he was Canada Research Chair in Rural History. Prior to this appointment he was for many years Professor of History at Trent University. Much of his research has focused on the economy and society of Upper Canada. Currently, he is completing a study of consumption by rural Upper Canadians, based on their charge accounts at country stores.
Cecilia Morgan, Historian, has a Doctorate in History and is Associate Professor, History of Education Program, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto. She teaches women's and gender history, cultural history, and social history. Her publications include Heroines and History: Representations of Madeleine de Verchére and Laura Secord (University of Toronto Press. 2002). She also has co-edited, with Kathyrn McPherson and Nancy M. Forestell, Gendered Pasts: Historical Essays in Femininity and Masculinity in Canada (Oxford University Press, 1999). Cecilia is particularly interested in the history of tourism in Niagara-on-the-Lake and in historical commemoration in the Niagara region.
Thomas Neumeyer, Stone Conservator and Stone Mason, Denmark
Donovan Pauly, Stone Conservator, Toronto, ON
Stephanie Porto, Conservator in Private Practice, holds a BFA from the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art and a MA & CAS from Buffalo State College. Before starting her own art conservation practice in Niagara Falls, Niagara Art Conservation, Stephanie worked at world-renowned institutions such as the Brooklyn Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film. She is a member of the Canadian Association for Conservation, the International Institute of Conservation, and the American Institute for Conservation (AIC). In addition, she is currently Chairperson Emeritus of the Research and Technical Studies Specialty Group of the AIC. Stephanie specializes in the preservation of paper artifacts, and has published research on the use of ionic fixatives to stabilize water-sensitive dye-based inks on paper.
Lisa Prosper, Cultural Landscape specialist, has a BA in Art History and an MA in Heritage Conservation from Carleton. Lisa has been a leading voice in the development of cultural landscape theory and practice in Canada since 2002. She has been an invited speaker on the topic of cultural landscapes at national and international forums, most recently at the US National Trust for Historic Preservation conference in Buffalo, and has published on Aboriginal cultural landscapes in the George Wright Forum. She has contributed to the development of new guidelines for cultural landscapes in the Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada, developed jointly by the Government of Canada and Canada’s provincial and territorial governments. She also sits on the Cultural Heritage Expert Committee for GatineauPark, a major National Capital Commission property outside Ottawa. Lisa is currently working on an interactive web project that adopts a cultural landscape approach to safeguarding and representing the cultural heritage of the Eastern James Bay Cree.
Joy Ormsby, Historian, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON, specializes in researching and documenting historic properties.
Robert Ritchie, Parks Naturalist, Niagara Parks School of Horticulture and Botanical Gardens, The Niagara Parks Commission, is a 1968 graduate of the Ontario Forest Technical School and has continued his interest in dendrology and woodlot management to the present. He returned to school, graduating from the Niagara Parks Commission School of Horticulture in 1996. Robert has held various positions within Niagara Parks, the last five years as Parks Naturalist, engaged in several environmental and natural resources projects within the 1720 hectares of NPC properties along the Canadian side of the Niagara River Corridor.
Carolyn Samko, Period Architecture specialist, has a B.A., and a Diploma in Heritage Conservation from Willowbank. She has a special interest in interior finishes. She is currently Senior Project Manager for the Heritage Capital Section of the City of Hamilton, Ontario where she is responsible for many significant heritage properties including Dundurn Castle, Whitehern Estate, and Battlefield Park, all National Historic Sites of Canada. Past accomplishments have included project manager for the restoration and adaptive the Lister Block in Hamilton, a Heritage Canada Foundation Award-winning project, and work on the adjacent William Thomas building. She has been actively involved in assessment and analysis, and has documented many significant properties including the historic portions of the Kingston, Penetanguishene, London and St. Thomas Psychiatric Hospitals.
Michael J. Seaman, Heritage Planner, is a member of the Canadian Institute of Planners and of CAHP. He is an urban planner with a Masters Degree in Heritage Conservation and 19 years of progressive experience in the heritage planning field. He has received a number of national and provincial awards for his work and is currently head of Planning for the Town of Grimsby. Previously he led a team of heritage professionals as Manager of Heritage Planning for the Town of Oakville, and before that served as a heritage planner with the Town of Aurora, and Town of Markham, both of which were winners of the Heritage Canada Foundation’s Prince of Wales Prize. Michael has volunteered in numerous heritage activities including past service as Chair of the Brampton Heritage Board and President of the Brampton Historical Society, Member of the Halifax Heritage Advisory Committee, and Member of the Board of the Canadian Association of Heritage Professionals. Since 2007, Michael has been an advisor to Heritage Canada on urban planning matters and was a contributor to the Heritage Canada study Paving the Way: A Roadmap for Heritage and Development, a national consultation strategy that aimed to achieve more positive outcomes for heritage resources. Michael is active in educating about heritage. He has lectured across Ontario, and contributed numerous articles to national and provincial publications. He is currently editor for heritage for Ontario Planning Journal providing an invaluable link between the planning profession and the heritage community. He has also hosted television shows about heritage and coordinated heritage related events such as Doors Open and meetings of the Ontario Heritage Planners Network. Michael is currently serving his first term as Ontario Governor on the board of Governors of the Heritage Canada Foundation.
André Scheinman is a Heritage Preservation Consultant. Recent projects include St. George’s Cathedral, Kingston; Delta Mill (N.H.S.); Kingston City Hall (N.H.S.); Raleigh Schoolhouse #13, Buxton (N.H.S.).
Harm Schonewille, Master Plasterer
Wendy Shearer, Landscape Architect, is a member of the Ontario and American Societies of Landscape Architects and a Fellow of the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects. Wendy is Managing Director of Wendy Shearer Landscape Architect, a division of MHBC Planning. For the past 25 years she has been involved in the documentation, assessment, and planning for numerous historic sites and cultural landscapes throughout Ontario. Completed historic restoration projects include the 1902 Italinate Garden at Fulford Place, Brockville for the Ontario Heritage Trust, the 1856 kitchen garden at Dundurn National Historic Site and the designated 1960 landscape at City Hall for the City of Hamilton. Cultural landscape projects have included the inventory, documentation and evaluation of designed country estates, large educational, institutional properties, and rural agricultural lands. She is completing the heritage district plan for the oil fields in Enniskillen Township and Oil Springs, Lambton County, a working industrial landscape. Ms. Shearer teaches the six day intensive course on Cultural Landscapes at the University of Victoria for the Cultural Resource Management Program. Since joining MHBC Planning in 2008 she has established the Cultural Heritage Section within the firm in order to encourage the integration of land use planning and the conservation of heritage resources. She is an active member of the Alliance for Historic Landscape Preservation and has been a member of the Canadian Association of Heritage Professionals since 1988.
John Shaw-Rimmington, Dry Stone Waller, was born in Windsor, England. In Canada during the 1970s he did restoration masonry work on many churches, historic public and commercial buildings, as well as consultation and maintenance at the Uxbridge Scott Museum. After moving to a farm near Cannington in 1992, he turned his attention to completing several free-standing dry stone walls along the borders of his property. His knowledge of designing and building with stone structurally is the result of many years of doing masonry work acquiring a comprehensive knowledge of traditional Canadian stonework. He has worked with several dry stone wallers from Great Britain, where he met with the president of the Dry Stone Wall Association of Great Britain, Paul Webley, in 2003 and had the privilege to work at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on dry stone repairs with master craftsman Norm Hadow, a royal waller to the Queen. John has been demonstrating the art of dry stone walling since 2000 at numerous venues and has given many workshops and seminars teaching dry stone walling in locations throughout North America, attracting students of all ages interested in learning how to build beautiful dry stone walls. He has been featured in many media stories and special episodes, including a CBC news reports detailing the building of the first public dry stone bridge in a Canadian Park. He has built a series of permanent dry stone bridges in southern Ontario, as well as dry stone features for clients in Ontario, British Columbia, Newfoundland and parts of the United States.
Mark Shoalts, Structural Engineer and Restoration Contractor, is President of Shoalts Bros. Construction Limited. He is a professional engineer, and a member of Professional Engineers of Ontario, the Canadian Association of Heritage Professionals, the Heritage Canada Foundation, and the Early American Industries Association. He is also a member of the Niagara Region’s Culture and Heritage Committee, working on Regional policy for the preservation and promotion of heritage resources in Niagara. He has hands-on experience in historical restoration, having personally performed restoration work on such sites as Butler’s Barracks, Fort George, Balls Falls, and Dundurn Castle. For the past twenty years, Mark and his father have been the demonstration carpenters at the annual Marshville Heritage Festival in Wainfleet, showing visitors the use of woodworking handtools while completing a range of restoration projects. Mark Shoalts and Shoalts Bros. Construction have performed restoration work on important national historic sites, including Ruthven Park in Cayuga, Dundurn Castle in Hamilton, and The Church of Our Lady Immaculate in Guelph; as well as many other significant heritage projects such as the 1817 Miller House, Navy Hall, every building in Fort George, Butler’s Barracks, Butler’s Burying Ground, Fort Mississauga, and The Niagara Apothecary in Niagara-on-the-Lake; most of the buildings at Balls Falls, Old St. John’s in Stamford, Old Galt City Hall, and many more. In 2007, Mark saved the 1845 Trinity United Church in Thorold from virtually certain demolition after it had been declared unsafe and irreparable. Mark also has been engaged as a restoration consultant by numerous individuals and groups in Niagara and beyond.
John Silburn, Structural Engineer and Restoration Consultant, is a member of Professional Engineers of Ontario. He developed and taught the Civil Engineering Technology-Restoration Program at St. Lawrence College, and has delivered workshops for the Federal Heritage Building Review Office, Parks Canada, the Historic Places Initiative, the Ontario Ministry of Culture and the Association for Preservation Technology International. As a consulting restoration engineer, he has worked on significant historic properties across Canada, and was consultant for the restoration of the Red House, the parliamentary complex in Trinidad.
Craig Sims, Heritage Building Consultant and Historic Windows specialist, is a graduate of the Civil Engineering Technology-Restoration Program (1979), St. Lawrence College, and the Technical Education Program (1993), Queens University, Kingston. In a variety of capacities over 30 years Craig has committed his working life to the responsible treatment of our built historic resources. He has worked as a Heritage Building Consultant for nearly twenty years and has demonstrated a full commitment to internationally recognized conservation standards. He has worked successfully with a broad range of clients including government agencies and community groups, but most commonly architects, engineers and contractors who require specialized knowledge. He has developed historic structures reports, historic structure condition surveys, developed specialized conservation specifications and drawings and seen projects through to completion with diligent site review. He has been involved in projects throughout Canada and various parts of the USA. Building types have varied from vernacular log and frame buildings on the prairies to the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa. Typical projects encompass all aspects of historic building envelopes and historic building interiors. He was the heritage consultant on the Capitol Theatre restoration in Port Hope, Ontario, and he developed the conservation design guidelines for the architectural elements of Fort Henry in Kingston, a National Historic Site. Typical of all projects these required a solid background in traditional building techniques, building science and conservation of materials such as wood, plaster, stone and metal. In Canada Craig is considered to be the authority on the restoration and upgrade of historic windows of all types. He has published extensively and is a frequent lecturer in North America on this subject. Workshops have been delivered for the Federal Heritage Building Review Office, Parks Canada, The Historic Places Initiative, the Ontario Ministry of Culture and The Association for Preservation Technology International
Julian Smith, Executive Director of Willowbank and Director of the Centre for Cultural Landscape, is an architect, conservator, scholar and educator. He has a BA from Oberlin, an MArch from MIT, and a Certificate in Preservation Planning from Cornell. He worked in the contemporary design field with Peter Eisenman in New York, and after returning to Canada began working in the conservation field with Parks Canada. He eventually became Chief Restoration Architect for the National Historic Sites program. He then established his own architectural and planning practice, and also founded and directed the graduate program in Heritage Conservation at Carleton University. Julian has been responsible for design and development work involving significant cultural sites in Canada, the U.S., France, Italy, India, Sri Lanka, and Japan. Among his projects are the restoration of the Vimy Monument in France, the Aberdeen Pavilion in Ottawa, and the Lister Block in Hamilton. He was Canadian delegate to UNESCO for the drafting of the new international recommendation on Historic Urban Landscapes. He is architectural advisor to the Trustees of Queen’s University, a past member of the Advisory Committee to the Minister of Canadian Heritage, and a frequent contributor to international forums. He is a recipient of Heritage Canada’s Gabrielle Léger Award and the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario’s Eric Arthur Award, both recognizing lifetime achievement in the heritage conservation field. He became Executive Director of Willowbank in 2008.
Rod Stewart, Historic Plaster Conservator, is founder and head of Historic Plaster Conservation Services Ltd.. Recent projects include the Royal Suite at Rideau Hall, the residence of the Governor General in Ottawa; Notre Dame Cathedral, Ottawa; Gould Memorial Library, Bronx Community College, New York;, Dominion Public Building, Hamilton, Ontario; Convocation Hall, University of Toronto.
Peter Stokes, Consulting Restoration Advocate, is one of Canada’s most noted restoration architects. He rose to prominence with his work at Upper Canada Village. He has worked extensively in the Province of Ontario and across Canada, and once he had moved to Niagara-on-the-Lake became very involved locally. He was an original member of the Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee (LACAC) now known as the Municipal Heritage Committee. He retains memberships in many heritage associations and sits on a number of heritage related boards and commissions.
David Tavares, Cultural Geographer, holds an MA and PhD in cultural geography from the University of Ottawa. His graduate research focused the role of visual and textual representations in shaping the public conceptions of places, cultures and landscapes. A former professor of Urban Geography courses at University of Ottawa, David currently works for the Federal Government supporting the settlement and adaptation of new immigrants.
Richard M. Unterman, Heritage Preservation Consultant, has an Honours BA, a Diploma of Restoration Technology, and an M.A. in Conservation Studies. He has over 26 years of experience in the heritage conservation field. Mr. Unterman has a broad range of experience in cultural resource inventory and evaluation, heritage conservation and planning, and the management of heritage projects. In the past he has had positions with the Ontario Heritage Foundation and the Heritage Branch of the former Ontario Ministry of Culture and Communications. In 1998 Mr. Unterman formed Unterman McPhail Associates. He has been a full participant in all of the firm’s secondary plan studies as well as numerous heritage conservation district studies and plans; the cultural heritage resource component of environmental assessments; cultural heritage resource inventory and evaluation; attendance at Conservation Review Board and Ontario Municipal Board hearings; cemetery conservation guidelines, historic structure reports and preservation reports; and historical and architectural research. Mr. Unterman co-edited the Annotated Master Specifications for the Cleaning and Repointing of Historic Masonry and edited the BRIC Technical Conservation Manual. Mr. Unterman has been active in CAPH, ICOMOS Canada, and APTI.
Leah Wallace, Heritage Planner, has an BA from Guelph and an MA from UBC, and is a member of the Canadian Institute of Planners. Since 2000, she has been the Heritage Planner for the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake. Ms. Wallace chaired the Flamborough LACAC for 6 years. She is the Chair of the Building Conservation Committee at Ruthven Park National Historic Site in Cayuga. She has also has been involved in the recent Municipal Sector Focus Group on changes to the Ontario Heritage Act.
Barbara Warren, Conservation Carpenter
Robert Watson, Geologist
Sakoieta' Widrick, (Sah-goh-yeht-AH’) (He Wakes Them Up Early), Cultural Consultant, was born in the Adirondack Mountain area of Upper State, New York. His family originally comes from the Mohawk Valley area in New York State, as well as Six Nations Territory in Ontario, Canada. He is of Mohawk ancestry. His clan is Okwaho (Wolf). He resides at Six Nations Grand River Iroquois Territory on Six Nations Reserve in Ontario with his partner D.“Tewutahowiht” Antone, Oneida Nation of the Thames, Turtle Clan, and is the father of six children, the grandfather of twenty grandchildren and great grandfather of one. Together he and Tewutahawiht operate Peace Tree Cultural Consultants, a small consulting business. Sakoieta’ follows the traditional Kanienkehaka (Mohawk) lifestyle. He is an artist, craft worker, ritualist, singer, dancer, flute maker, player, and instructor, educator, healer, active gardener, and recognized writer. He is an active participant, member and singer at the Grand River Six Nations Mohawk Longhouse and a member of the Old Mush Men's Traditional Iroquois Singing Society. Sakoieta’ is also an Instructor of Mohawk Language, and Haudenosaunee Culture and Spirituality at Brock University.
John Wilcox, Stained Glass specialist, is Principal of Vitreous Glassworks, a heritage glazing studio specializing in artisanal stained glass
Molly Yimlei Yep, Architectural Drawing specialist, graduated from the School of Architecture at McGill University when accurate hand drawing skills were important. She did inked measured drawings of heritage buildings in Old Montreal and elsewhere. For over twenty years in Canada and England, she worked as an architect on many building types from design to working drawings to project management. She also has her MBA from the University of Western Ontario. As a retired architect, she is pursuing her other loves of ceramics and painting. By teaching Architectural Technical Drawing, she feels that she is restoring the art of architectural drawing -- the old techniques and skills of beautiful hand drawings in pencil and ink which are being lost to AutoCAD.
Penny Young, Heritage Planner/Archaeologist, has a BA and MA from McMaster University. She has been involved in cultural heritage management and archaeology since 1986, working for municipal and provincial governments, local historical sites and archaeological consulting firms in Ontario, Canada, Mexico and England. Recently, she has been a heritage planner/coordinator with the cities of Brampton, Mississauga, and with the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Culture (MTC). From 1999 to 2008, she was a regional archaeologist at the Ontario Ministry of Transportation. From 1994-99, she worked at MTC managing the registered archaeological sites database.
Rosi Zirger, Heritage Consultant, holds a BA & MA in Social Anthropology from the University of Toronto and is a graduate of Willowbank’s Heritage Conservation Program. She has been involved in numerous historic research and building restoration projects in the Niagara area. She currently is a Heritage Planner for the Ministry of Culture in Ontario.