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English Faculty and Student play key roles in the "Remembering the Real Winnie" Exhibit

November 05, 2014

An exhibition (5 November-7 December 2014) at the Ryerson Image Centre (opens in new window) , “Remembering the Real Winnie: The World’s Most Famous Bear Turns 100,” commemorates the centenary of the WWI by exploring the Canadian military origins of A. A. Milne’s celebrated character, Winnie-the-Pooh. The exhibition, Guest Curated by Dr. Irene Gammel of the English Department and Modern Literature and Culture Research Centre (opens in new window) , features the diaries, photographs, and medical bag belonging to Canadian soldier and veterinarian Lt. Harry Colbourn, who purchased, named, brought overseas to England, and later donated to the London zoo Winnie the black bear, who became a star attraction at the zoo and the inspiration for A. A. Milne’s most famous fictional bear. The exhibition also features early editions of Milne’s children’s books, loaned by the Children’s Literature Archive (opens in new window) . English BA student Rachel Kearney helped develop the narrative for the interactive feature (opens in new window)  that serves as an online accompaniment to the exhibition. Dr. Andrew O'Malley of the English Department, a specialist in children's literature, and Director of Ryerson's Children's Literature Archive, contributed an essay on Winnie's formative role in the creation of the Winnie-the-Pooh books to the exhibition's website (opens in new window) .

 (PDF file) Exhibition Program (opens in new window)