Endel Ruberg
← People of the Society · on record 1954–1965
Everything the Society’s own records say of Endel Ruberg — the offices held, the standings conferred, and the awards won — gathered on one page. Where the records are silent, so is this one.
In memoriam · died during the Christmas season (year not stated on the page; reported Fall 1989)
An Estonian-born Fellow (Associate 1954, Fellow 1955) with sixteen records in the archive's award ledger, from 1954 into the 1970s — among the most prolific winners the Society's competitions ever produced. Born in Virumaa, Estonia, in 1917, he trained at the Ateneum in Helsinki and in sculpture and woodcarving, worked in occupational therapy in Finland, then in leathercraft in Umeå, Sweden, for the store Nordiska Kompaniet. Seen at a Swedish Consulate arts exhibition in 1951, he was invited to Canada through a contact of the Birks family and arrived in Montreal in March 1951, within a week working on commissions for Birks and entering a Canadian Handicrafts Guild competition. In February 1953 he and John Opariek were the Montreal exhibitors in the Society's display at the 1st Canadian International Hobby Show in Toronto. His work — repoussé in leather with dyes of his own formulation — went to Ottawa Birks for presentation to heads of government and industry: a guest book for Emperor Hirohito's delegation, a picture frame for Dwight D. Eisenhower, a presentation book for Richard Nixon, a box and gold-tooled folder for Vincent Massey. He took First Prize for Best Original Entry at the 1954 C.N.E. — apparently the first time a leathercraftsman had won it — and in 1955, the year of his Fellowship, won “Tooled or Carved” plus Honorable Mention in Best Design and Best Original Entry. He taught leathercraft at the Finnish-Canadian Centre until his death. The two-page obituary (Fall 1989, pp. 2–3) is by Rene Hackstetter and names him beside Don MacKinnon, Bob Muma, Edith Roscoe, Clarice Packham and the Larmours as one of the Society's founding pillars.
From Fall 1989; and Spring 1953, page 7.
Certification
- Associate of the CSCL 1954
- Fellow of the CSCL 1955
Served the Society as
- C.N.E. Demonstrator 1962
Awards
- British American Oil Company Special Award 1959
- Canadian Handicrafts Guild Competition 1958
- Canadian Handicrafts Guild Competition First Prize 1955–1965
- Canadian Handicrafts Guild Competition Honourable Mention 1955–1964
- Canadian Handicrafts Guild Golden Anniversary Exhibition First Prize 1956
- Canadian National Exhibition, Canadian Handicrafts Guild Section 1954
- International Assembly Salon Exhibit 1961
- Second CNE Hobby and Homecraft Show Public Preference Poll, Small Articles, 4th place 1954
Demonstrations given
- Demonstrating throughout the Exhibition 1957
CSCL Exhibition, 1957From Autumn 1957, page 5.