Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
Bernie Gates sous fonds
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Sous-fonds
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Class of material specific details area
Statement of scale (cartographic)
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Biographical history
Bernard "Bernie" Stanley Gates (1935 November 13–2023 August 29) was born in Essex, England, and immigrated to Canada in 1963. He worked for General Motors in Ontario until retirement, after which he settled near Kingston.
A self-taught artist and avid antique picker, Gates became a leading authority on Ontario decoy carving. His passion for decoys led him to make contributions to Canadian folk art history through researching, interviewing carvers, and publishing three books: Ontario Decoys (1982), Ontario Decoys II (1986), and Nichol Decoys: The Smiths Falls School of Carving (co-authored with Jeff Mewburn and William C. Reeve). He created the website ontariodecoys.ca to preserve and share his extensive documentation. Gates also facilitated the acquisition of an 1860s folk sculpture by James Hertle Sr. for the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia. Gates died at Peterborough, Ontario.