Brenda Bury

Brenda Bury (born 1932) is an English professional portrait artist who lives in Canada. She has painted members of the British Royal Family, the aristocracy, and politicians in the British and Canadian governments.

Early life and education Bury was born in Brierley near Barnsley, South Yorkshire, England in 1932.

When she was seven years old she won a National Savings painting competition and, at 12, won a youth club painting competition.

Bury later studied Fine Art at the University of Reading with J. Anthony Betts, where she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts. As a student, she was given brushes originally owned by James McNeill Whistler by a University of Reading Professor.

Bury has painted many notable subjects of Great Britain and Canada including Queen Elizabeth II, Margaret Thatcher, John Diefenbaker, Tony Benn, Quintin Hogg, Sally Ann Howells and John Napier Turner. Her portrait of Alfred Edward McVie, when he was Mayor of Barnsley in the 1950s, and his wife is held in the collection of the Barnsley Museums.

Personal life Bury is married to Nobel Prize-winning Canadian chemist John Polanyi. She moved to Canada in the 1980s and they are based in Toronto.