Victoria-based artist designs new commemorative loonie honouring trail-blazing female engineer

They called her the Queen of Hurricanes. Now, pioneering aeronautical engineer and woman's rights activist Elsie MacGill is featured on the newest commemorative loonie, designed by Victoria-based artist Claire Watson.

Watson says she was selected by the Royal Canadian Mint last year to craft the design for the loonie honouring MacGill. 

Since 2019, she has designed three silver commemorative coins. However, this design is her first depicting the legacy of an individual.

"It was exciting because I'd never done [a loonie]," she said. "Then I read about Elsie and learned a bit more about her, what she stood for, and what she did. She's quite a remarkable person, so it sounded like a great challenge."

The design was selected from among several submitted by female artists across Canada. The design also underwent a thorough vetting with engineers, historians and MacGill's family members to ensure accuracy, according to Deneen Perrin, a spokesperson with the Royal Canadian Mint.

MacGill's legacy

As the first female aeronautical engineer in the world, Perrin says MacGill, who was born in Vancouver, redefined what was possible for women in Canada during her lifetime. 

She was the first Canadian woman to graduate with a bachelor's in electrical engineering in 1927, the first woman in North America to graduate with a master's in aeronautical engineering in 1929, and the first Canadian woman to practise as an engineer in 1938.

In 1929, she contracted polio. Although MacGill was told by doctors that she would never walk again, she regained mobility with the use of two canes and continued her pursuit of a career in aeronautics.

MacGill accepted the role of chief engineer at the Canadian Car and Foundry, where she designed the Maple Leaf II biplane. 

During the Second World War, she pioneered a new, modular construction system that allowed the factory to produce over 1,450 Hawker Hurricane aircraft — a feat that led to MacGill being celebrated in a comic book story, Queen of the Hurricanes.

Perrin says the mint decided to honour MacGill as part of its mission to feature diverse, underrepresented people that have made a difference in Canada.

"Elsie MacGill was a really interesting [figure] for people to really get behind and for us to help educate Canadians about these interesting stories and interesting people," she said.

West Coast-inspired, self-taught artist

Watson is a self-taught artist whose work typically depicts West Coast-inspired images, including animals and landscape scenes. She specializes in pen and ink, watercolour and digital design.

Prior to her time in Victoria, she lived on a sailboat in Tofino and Gabriola Island.

Watson's previous commemorative coins were quarters that celebrated the anniversary of the St. Lawrence Seaway, Canada's unique landscapes, and the 100th anniversary of the Royal Agricultural Fair in Toronto.

Watson said she wanted to portray MacGill as a "confident, strong individual."

The coin depicts MacGill looking at two of the planes she is famous for — the Hawker Hurricane and Maple Leaf II. Her hands, which are wearing an engineer's ring, hold blueprints.

Three million of the commemorative coins were introduced into circulation at the start of August, two million of which have colours featuring the green and brown hues of the Hawker Hurricane fighter plane.

"To be able to celebrate this trail-blazing woman was really quite incredible for us," said Perrin.