Maria Frances Ann Miller

The Audubon of Nova Scotian field flowers.

Maria Frances Ann Miller (1813–1875) was a Halifax-born teacher, poet, and artist. She became the first Nova Scotian woman to gain recognition as a professional artist. In 1836, the North British Society named her ‘Painter of the Year,’ confirming her place in the province’s cultural life.

Maria’s talent was encouraged early. Her mother recognized her abilities and had the means to arrange private lessons. She studied art in Halifax under J. E. Acres and W. H. Jones, and also with Professor L’Estrange, an English drawing master active in the city in the early 1830s.

While still a young woman, Maria taught drawing and painting to women at a school run by her mother. By 1833 she had opened her own drawing school in the family home, even as she continued her studies with L’Estrange.

A turning point came when Titus Smith, a respected local botanist and Secretary of Agriculture, urged her to focus on Nova Scotia’s native flora. Inspired, Maria began to publish her Wildflowers of Nova Scotia by subscription in 1830. Over time she produced a series of four volumes, depicting plants at their actual size with remarkable accuracy. Her work was not only admired as art but also valued for its scientific detail.

Her drawings reached far beyond Halifax. Thirty of her botanical sketches were presented to Queen Victoria, a noted patron of the arts, and Maria was honoured with royal patronage. Today, her works are held in collections across Canada, including the Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, the New Brunswick Museum, and the National Gallery of Canada.

Maria Miller died in Halifax in 1875, her death was widely noted in the press, a sign of the recognition she achieved in her lifetime. She remains one of the earliest Canadian women whose art combined scientific observation with aesthetic beauty.