Florence McGillivray was a Canadian painter of landscapes, still life and portraits, who visited St Ives in 1910 and possibly also in 1912, en route to France. While her presence in the town at this time is unrecorded, several paintings of St Ives by her appeared at auction in Toronto in 2012. After studying at the Ontario School of Art, she became a teacher and occasional critic. Her work was exhibited publicly for the first time in 1881. Outside of Canada, her work was shown in New York, London and Paris (Salon de Beaux Arts).

On a visit to France in 1913 she became influenced by the Impressionists and Fauves. After returning to Canada in 1914 her works entered public collections such as the National Gallery of Canada. It was felt that her European experience had given her a new vision for painting the Canadian landscape. She later moved to Ottowa, becoming a founder member of the Ottawa Group of artists.