| Francis Lee Jaques |
| Francis Lee Jaques (pronounced "Jay-quees") known as "Lee," grew up near Atkin, Minnesota on the banks of the Mississippi River. His father, Ephriam Jaques, a hunting guide, farmer, writer, poet and logger, introduced his son, Lee, to nature in all of its glory, and encouraged him in his love of drawing. Lee's reserved demeanor and artistic talents set him apart at an early age. He was recalled as a child operating in "another world." While his family was interested in education, Lee was basically self taught and in today's terms, "home schooled." Much of his knowledge was gained by visiting with the people who hunted with his father.
Practical experiences such as "taking trees apart," and inheriting a taxidermy shop in Atkin in repayment of a ten dollar debt, laid the ground work for his fascinating career. The taxidermy trade was learned in a short apprenticeship with John Harrison of Atkin and a correspondence course. While work was slow, Jaques generated a group of watercolor paintings titled "A Portfolio of Drawings of Nature As It Is." After serving in the Army during World War II, Lee worked in Duluth as a commercial artist with Duluth Photoengraving. While in Duluth, he met Clarence C. Rosenkranz, an artist whose technique in oil painting and observation influenced Lee for the rest of his life. His career reached a new level when he was recognized by the American Museum of Natural History in New York and hired as a museum artist. He traveled throughout the world to paint and observe, returning to produce the dioramas which were new display techniques at that time. He returned to Minnesota and is responsible for the dioramas, still on display, at the Bell Museum of Natural History in Minneapolis. His famous black and white "scratch board" illustrations are well known by the canoeing world. Together with his wife Florence Page Jaques, they produced Canoe Country, Snowshoe Country and other books chronicling their canoeing adventures. During the course of his career, Jaques illustrated more than 40 books, including several for Sigurd F. Olson. In 1969, Francis Lee Jaques passed away at the age of 82. |
| Hardwater Books |