Leaders in the Field: The History and Legacy of Art at Mount Allison showcases the vitality and significant contributions of Mount Allison University's Fine Arts department to Canadian visual art and culture. Founded in the mid-19th century, it was the first fine arts department in Canada and has been home for many of Canada's most important artists, either as students or faculty members. The legacy has been remarkable.

The extensive list of artists includes such luminaries as Herménégilde Chiasson, Alex Colville, Michael de Adder, Evergon, Tom Forrestall, Lawren P. Harris, Susan Low-Beer, Danica Lundy, Christopher Pratt, Mary Pratt, and Janice Wright Cheney, among many others.

This handsome volume includes essays by curators and art historians Ray Cronin, Mireille Eagan, and Jane Tisdale on the history of Fine and Applied Arts at Mount Allison. Also included are over 350 reproductions of work by a broad sweep of artists who studied or taught in Mount A's Fine Arts Department over its 170-year history.