View from the top of the Murray Memorial Building showing the end of the building plus the entrance, theatre and the classroom wings. Trees in the foreground, city in the background showing Ogilvie Flour mill on the left and the Canadian Pacific railway bridge across the river on the right.

View in the winter with classroom wing on the left. Hoarfrost on the trees and shrubs in the foreground.

Looking west across the Bowl at campus buildings (l to r): Marquis Hall, Arts Building, and Chemistry (Thorvaldson) Building.

Looking east at Arts Building; Thorvaldson Building in background.

Looking west at Chemistry annexes; Thorvaldson Building and Arts Tower in background.

Bio/Historical Note: The limitations of the original Chemistry Building became apparent with the massive influx of students at the end of World War II. The rise in enrollment put a strain on the resources of universities across the country. In response the federal government offered military surplus equipment and buildings to educational institutions at bargain prices. The University of Saskatchewan purchased nine surplus huts used at the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan airport at Dafoe, Saskatchewan, for $46,000 and joined them together to form Chemistry Annex One and Two. This “temporary” solution remained in place for two decades. The annexes were reconfigured in 1964-1965. The Thorvaldson Building opened on 6 June 1966. The annexes were removed by spring 1977.

Autumn view of statue of Lesya Ukrainka with Arts Tower in background.

Bio/Historical Note: Lesya Ukrainka (Larysa Kosach-Kvitka) (1871-1913), the celebrated Ukrainian poet, made her mark on Ukrainian and world literature through her diverse writing talents. Her profound knowledge of world history and languages enabled her to write extensively across genres on a variety of subjects. In her lyrical works and dramatic poems, she vividly developed the themes of patriotism, human dignity, and personal integrity. Ukrainka’s work is timeless in its powerful assertion of human rights and freedoms. In 1976, a bronze statue of Lesya Ukrainka, made in Kyiv, Ukraine (USSR) by sculptor Halyna Kal’chenko and architect Anatoliy Ihnashchenko, was unveiled at the University of Saskatchewan. Commissioned by the Association for Cultural Relations with Ukrainians Abroad, the statue was at the time seen by some merely as Soviet propaganda designed to rehabilitate their international reputation tarnished, in part, by injustices perpetrated against the people of Ukraine. The gift was initially declined by both the Province of Saskatchewan and the City of Saskatoon before being accepted by the University of Saskatchewan and installed on campus in a grove south of the Arts Tower. Through a generous donation by Dr. Victor O. Buyniak, as well as through the support of alumni and the wider Ukrainian community, the statue was refurbished and unveiled in its present location on 1 August 2013, the centenary of the death of Lesya Ukrainka.

Arts Tower at seven stories on the University of Saskatchewan campus.

Three-dimensional models of a portion of the campus, including the Arts Building and the Murray Memorial (Main) Library.

Three-dimensional models of a portion of the campus, including the Arts Building and the Main Library.

Image 1 is a view looking northwest of the 10-foot high bronze statue of Lesya Ukrainka, the celebrated Ukrainian poet; Arts Tower in background. Image 2 is a view taken from the foot of the statue looking up at it.

Bio/Historical Note: Lesya Ukrainka (Larysa Kosach-Kvitka) (1871-1913), the celebrated Ukrainian poet, made her mark on Ukrainian and world literature through her diverse writing talents. Her profound knowledge of world history and languages enabled her to write extensively across genres on a variety of subjects. In her lyrical works and dramatic poems, she vividly developed the themes of patriotism, human dignity, and personal integrity. Ukrainka’s work is timeless in its powerful assertion of human rights and freedoms. In 1976, a bronze statue of Lesya Ukrainka, made in Kyiv, Ukraine (USSR) by sculptor Halyna Kal’chenko and architect Anatoliy Ihnashchenko, was unveiled at the University of Saskatchewan. Commissioned by the Association for Cultural Relations with Ukrainians Abroad, the statue was at the time seen by some merely as Soviet propaganda designed to rehabilitate their international reputation tarnished, in part, by injustices perpetrated against the people of Ukraine. The gift was initially declined by both the Province of Saskatchewan and the City of Saskatoon before being accepted by the University of Saskatchewan and installed on campus in a grove south of the Arts Tower. Through a generous donation by Dr. Victor O. Buyniak, as well as through the support of alumni and the wider Ukrainian community, the statue was refurbished and unveiled in its present location on 1 August 2013, the centenary of the death of Lesya Ukrainka.

Biographical/historical note: A statue of Lesya Ukrainka, the celebrated Ukrainian poet, was presented to the U of S in 1976 by the Association for Cultural Relations with Ukrainians Abroad of the USSR as a gift of friendship from the people of Ukraine to the people of Canada.

Looking north at Arts Tower in winter. On back of image: "With its eleven story office and classroom tower the Arts Building has become a central campus landmark.".

View of classroom in the north half of the west wing of the Arts Building. View from back of classroom looking toward blackboards.

Scaffolding built to the top of the building and four floors of girders in place. Construction sign and classrooms on the left with trees and sidewalk in front of the buildings. Clouds in the sky.

Construction equipment in front of the building, two and one half floors of framing are in place. Classrooms on the right with leafless trees in the foreground.

View in the summer with classroom wing on the left. Sidewalk, trees and shrubs in the foreground.