More to Loonie artist than wildlife, say those who knew him

A local art vendor has shared her memories of Robert-Ralph Carmichael, the Sylvan Valley artist best known for designing the loon image seen on Canada's dollar coin.

Carmichael passed away Saturday at the age of 78 after a battle with cancer.

"He was one of the true gentlemen of this world and a very, very gifted artist," said Rose Sundaram, owner/operator of Roses Art Gallery and Framing on Bruce Street, speaking to SooToday.

The shop has long been the best local source to purchase Carmichael's paintings, with an entire wall dedicated to Carmichael's work.

"It's such a loss to the art world and the loss of a friend," Sundaram said.

As everyone who knew Carmichael knows, having his loon image on Canada's dollar coin didn't go to his head.

"He was low key and didn't boast about his artistic achievements," Sundaram said.

Carmichael's association with "the Loonie" dates back to 1986.

His loon design was approved by the Royal Canadian Mint and the dollar coin went into circulation June 30, 1987.

Carmichael was known not only for his realistic works, but also for his surrealistic paintings.

"He was very quiet but extremely talented, and one could not even begin to perceive where his mind got all of those insights for some of the images he created," Sundaram said.

"He did not believe in reproducing his work, every painting was one of a kind."

Sundaram recalled an outdoor painting experience she had with Carmichael and Gwen Keatley, Carmichael's wife and an artist in her own right.

"We went up to the lake near their place and it was in the spring and to me there weren't a lot of things, just trees around this lake and a plain sky, so I'm there as a novice painter and thinking 'My goodness there's nothing here to paint,' then Bob comes up beside me, looks around and says 'There's so much to paint here, I don't know what to choose,'" Sundaram chuckled.

"That was the eye of a true artist, everything he saw was a painting in his eyes." 

Carmichael is survived by his wife Gwen Keatley, in-laws, nephews and nieces.

The following is a news release issued by the Royal Canadian Mint:

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Statement by the Royal Canadian Mint on the passing of Robert-Ralp Carmichael, renowned artist behind Canada's Loonie

OTTAWA — The Royal Canadian Mint was saddened to learn of the passing of Robert-Ralph Carmichael on Saturday, July 16 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. 

Mr. Carmichael was the artist who designed Canada's celebrated one-dollar coin.

In 1987, one-dollar banknotes in Canada were replaced by the new one-dollar coin. The coin was instantly dubbed the Loonie after the solitary loon that graces the coin's reverse side; the nickname caught on and Canadians have embraced it ever since.  Mr. Carmichael's Loonie design has stood the test of time due to its simplicity in depicting an icon of Canadian wildlife.

The introduction of the one-dollar coin in 1987 was the most the significant change to Canada's coinage system in over 50 years.  Since that time, Mr. Carmichael's design has appeared on over 1 billion one-dollar coins. We thank him for his remarkable contribution in creating what has become a true Canadian symbol.

We express our sincere condolences to Mr. Carmichael's wife Gwen Keatley, and to his family and friends.

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