[[image]]

The Honourable Mark Robert Drouin, 1957-1962

The Senate commissions a portrait of every Speaker in recognition of the procedural and protocol importance of that role — a tradition that predates Confederation.

The subject of this portrait, the Honourable Mark Robert Drouin, was a prominent Quebec lawyer who loved hockey and live theatre. He worked on several notorious criminal cases, including the 1946 trial of a McGill University professor found guilty of espionage.

In 1957, Mr. Drouin was appointed to the Senate and named Speaker at the same time — a rare event. He presided over the Red Chamber when Queen Elizabeth II opened Parliament that same year, a novel event in Canadian history.

The Speaker can choose the artist for whom they would like to sit; Mr. Drouin selected Kenneth Forbes, a notable Canadian landscape and portrait painter. Mr. Forbes served as an official war artist during the First World War and received the Order of Canada in 1967 for his artistic contributions.

[[artitemobjectdetails]]