New Hamburg author releases biography of former Ontario deputy culture minister and brother-in-law, David Silcox

The book cover for Keep In Touch: The Serendipitous Life of Canadian Arts Icon David Silcox by Nancy Silcox. Photo courtesy of Nancy Silcox

Galen Simmons, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

New Hamburg author Nancy Silcox has just released a biography detailing the storied career and life of former Ontario Deputy Minister of Culture, and her late brother-in-law, David Silcox – the result of three years of research into a man who worked his whole life to have Canadian art recognized internationally and at home.

Released on Nov. 18, Keep In Touch: The Serendipitous Life of Canadian Arts Icon David Silcox chronicles David Silcox’s rise through the ranks of the Canadian cultural establishment, from his early days as first arts officer of the Canada council in the mid-1960s to his positions as assistant deputy minister of culture in Ottawa and then deputy minister of culture for the Province of Ontario, and his leadership at Sotheby’s Canada in the 1990s. Throughout his career, David Silcox supported, promoted and even repatriated the work of visual artists including Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven, Christopher Pratt, Harold Town, David Milne and Paul Kane.

“He touched all sorts of areas in our society, not just the arts,” Nancy Silcox said. “People are going to look at this and go, ‘Oh, this guy was deputy minister of culture, now why do I want to know about him?’ But there’s so much more to him than that. That’s the one thing I want to come across in this book. He’s not out of touch.

“ … (My husband) Louis is the youngest one of a family of four boys and David was 11 years older. He passed away two years ago February at age 86. He had done so much, and he was such an interesting guy. He moved into dementia – unfortunately, it’s a fairly strong family trait – and I went to my sister-in-law asking if he kept notes. ‘No, he just scribbled,’ and I thought, ‘This can’t be.’ He just gave so much and did so many interesting things, and I said, ‘Ok, I’ll do it,’ and it took me three years.”

Since David Silcox’s job took him across the country and beyond and gave him the opportunity to work with some of the most influential Canadians in the realms of both art and politics, Nancy Silcox said her last name and relationship with her brother-in-law opened the door to interviews with people she never would have been able to speak with otherwise.

“People like Bob Rae, the former leader of the (Ontario) NDP, (author) Margaret Atwood, (former Governor General) Adrienne Clarkson, people like that – very important Canadians – and I got to talk to all of them because they all knew David. That was a lot of the fun, calling these people up and saying, ‘Tell me about David,’ ” Nancy Silcox said.

While David Silcox had the opportunity to work with countless influential Canadians and people from around the world, Nancy Silcox said her brother-in-law also travelled across the country to hand out funding to art galleries. Locally, David Silcox’s work supported art galleries in Stratford, Kitchener-Waterloo and London, among others.

After being appointed deputy minister of culture by the provincial Liberals in the 1980s, David Silcox’s career in politics came to end in 1990 when the Ontario NDP formed government.

“His name was ‘Diamond Dave’ and he got fired because he was spending too much money on the arts,” Nancy Silcox said. “So, where did he land on his feet? He became the president of Sotheby’s Canada, and he did really good things there. He brought back lost Canadian masterpieces like pieces by The Group of Seven from the United States, and others from England.”

Sharing one of the many stories about her brother-in-law she heard while researching this book, Nancy Silcox said he once personally drove to down to Vermont to repatriate a house full of invaluable Canadian artwork.

“He got a call when he was Sotheby’s president from … Vermont, and it was a call from a lawyer to say, ‘We’re calling you on behalf of a client who just passed. … There are a whole bunch of pieces of art in his house when he died. He was a Canadian who lived in Vermont, but he wanted this art returned to Canada.’

“ … So, David, being the kind of guy he was, rented a van, took a couple of his staff with him, they roared down to Vermont – David behind the wheel – opened the door of this old, ramshackle cottage and it was full of The Group of Seven and the Beaver Hall Group and Tom Thomson. And he brought it home and returned it to Canada. That is really one of my favourite stories.”

Keep In Touch: The Serendipitous Life of Canadian Arts Icon David Silcox is available for purchase through Indigo, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Indie Bookstores and at Words Worth Books in Waterloo. Locals can also order a copy of the book by emailing Nancy Silcox directly at nancymsilcox@gmail.com.