It is no secret that Tom Thomson (1877-1917) and Joyce Wieland (1930-1998) never met. Their art could not be further apart stylistically or methodologically. Thomson was a colourist, armed with brushes and oil paints. Wieland was an activist who drew upon an arsenal of wide-ranging contemporary media and whose work is ground-breaking in the annals of feminist art. Yet, Wieland also celebrated her attraction to Thomson. Passion Over Reason explores Wieland's and Canada's fascination with Thomson and his status as a cult figure of masculine mystique, while re-examining the mythology of his life story. Wieland was an equally heroic artist. She established a career as an experimental filmmaker and mixed media artist, working primarily in Toronto but also in New York.

Passion Over Reason: Tom Thomson & Joyce Wieland commemorates the art of these two Canadian-born artists, while at the same time contributing a feminist perspective to the long-held narrative of Thomson. The book mixes sexuality and gender with politics, and nature and nationalism with the formation of a collective identity.