Leo Mol

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Leo Mol (born January 15, 1915) is a Ukrainian Canadian artist and sculptor. He was born Leonid Molodozhanyn in Polonne near Shepetivka, Ukraine.

Mol studied sculpture at the Leningrad Academy of Arts from 1936 to 1940. In 1943, he studied in The Hague, and in December, 1948, he and his wife, Magareth (whom he married in 1943), emigrated to Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Over three hundred of Mol's works are displayed in the Leo Mol Sculpture Garden in Winnipeg's Assiniboine Park. The garden was unveiled in 1992 and has been expanded twice since. It is supported by private donations, and Mol personally donated most of the sculpture. In 2002, his sculpture Lumberjacks was featured on a Canadian postage stamp.

In 1989, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. In 2000, he was awarded the Order of Manitoba. He is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.

He has received honorary degrees from the University of Winnipeg, the University of Alberta and the University of Manitoba.