About Peter and Catharine Whyte
Peter and Catharine Whyte were twentieth century Canadian artists from Banff, Alberta known for their landscape paintings of the Canadian Rockies.
Catharine Whyte was born June 13, 1906 in Concord, Massachusetts, and raised in an affluent household. Her father, Russell Robb, studied engineering at MIT and quickly became senior vice-president and treasurer of a successful engineering firm. Her mother, Edith Morse Robb, ran a successful embroidery design company.

In late 1925, Catharine Robb met a quiet, dark-haired Canadian named Peter Whyte, who she described in one journal entry as her "Scotch friend." Together, they pursued a fairly traditional course of study, which included anatomy, figure drawing, and portrait painting.

What began as a casual friendship between the two art students slowly grew into a more intimate relationship, as they discovered their shared views on religion, philosophy, and life. Between semesters, Peter returned to Banff to work for the Brewster Transport Company, writing long letters to Catharine. When Catharine's father died in February 1927, Peter provided comfort and support. During this time, Peter openly declared his feelings for Catharine, and by the spring of 1928, Catharine reciprocated.
 
On June 30, 1930, after Catharine completed her course of study, Peter and Catharine were married under an apple tree before 300 guests at the Robb estate. They moved to Banff and built a log home and studio between Banff and the Bow River. From their home in the Canadian Rockies, the Whytes spent significant time together hiking in the mountains and painting the grandeur of the surrounding landscape. They painted at Lake O’Hara, Lake Louise, Skoki Valley, Bow Lake, Mount Assiniboine, Yoho, Wenkchemna Pass, and the Banff area, creating striking landscape paintings of the mountains, lakes, glaciers, and larch trees of the Canadian Rockies.
 
Catharine's responsibilities managing their home took precedence over her painting. She did not create a major painting after 1939. She once wrote: "I have decided that life is a balancing of things. If you want one thing you have to give up another, you just can't have or do all you want, and it means trying to figure out which of the alternatives to choose. Peter and I have our life into the kind where we work as a team and we do practically everything together. We like it that way and feel we do better doing things together."

Following Peter’s death on December 3, 1966, Catharine began a new life on her own, focusing her energies on community, travel, and conservation. She also rediscovered her passion for skiing, which reintroduced her to a life of youthful enthusiasm. At the age of 63, she received her pilot's license from the Chinook Flying School. She became an important patron of the arts, providing significant financial support to the Banff Center. Catharine also gave significant funding to the I.D.E.A. project, Intercultural Development and Education through the Arts. She continued to support the Stoney people, both financially and through her support of their arts and crafts. In 1970, the Stoney people honored her by making her a blood sister and giving her the name Princess White Shield.

In her later years, Catharine Whyte received many honors, including an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Calgary in 1969, Outstanding Citizen of the Year by the Banff Kiwanis Club in 1969, and the Award of Merit from the Historical Society of Alberta in 1978. That same year, she received Canada's highest civilian honor, the Order of Canada.

In 1979, Catharine Whyte died of cancer. She was 72 years old.
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Peter Whyte was born January 22, 1905, the son of Dave White, a dry goods merchant from Banff who once worked as a Canadian Pacific Railway section man at Sawback, near Banff. Peter’s mother, Annie Curren White, was the daughter of John Donaldson Curren, who worked as a coal scout and painter. Dave White developed friendships with some of the traveling Stoney Indians, whose ancient hunting trail ran near White's Sawback section house.

Growing up in Banff, Peter enjoyed various outdoor activities and sports, including skiing, hiking, and horseback riding. He also showed an interest in art, and soon learned to paint from local artists.
 
Peter learned landscape techniques from studying the work of Belmore Browne, Aldro T. Hibbard, Carl Rungius, and the Group of Seven painter J. E. H. MacDonald. MacDonald visited Lake O'Hara in 1924 and returned every year to paint. Peter accompanied MacDonald on many of his outings, painting alongside the famous artist. In 1925, Peter painted with Aldro T. Hibbard, who encouraged him to enroll at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. It was here in 1925 that Peter Whyte first met Catharine Robb.
 
In the early 1930s, the young couple, along with Peter's older brother and other members of the Ski Club of the Canadian Rockies, constructed a lodge in the remote Skoki Valley region northeast of Lake Louise. In 1932, Peter and Catharine took over management of Skoki Lodge. The following years were happy ones. The Whytes enjoyed the company of friends, the majesty of the landscape around them, and the outdoor world that offered them so much. Their home served as a gathering place for visiting artists and friends.
 
At the outbreak of World War II, Peter enlisted in the reserve army and reported for basic training duty with the Calgary Highlanders at Sarcee Camp. He worked as a photographer, taking ID pictures and other menial tasks. In April 1944, Peter entered a painting in an art contest, winning a $50 second prize for his effort. More important than the money, Peter Whyte was named an official war artist.
 
In 1952, Peter was diagnosed with cataracts in both eyes. Complicated by an ongoing bout with alcoholism, Peter struggled for the next six years, trying to paint everything he could while the eyes could still see. After a second cataract operation, Peter continued to produce large canvases of the Stoney peoples, many of which ended up in the Luxton Museum established by Norman Luxton.

In 1958, Peter and Catharine formed a foundation to ensure the survival of their collection. This decision led to the amazing collection that would become one of the most important in North America.