Tom Thompson, "Spring Ice", 1916  

 

The Group of Seven Era

Juan Wilson

© 2000 The Gobbler: Spring Bud

On a recent trip to Toronto I visited the The Art Gallery of Ontario. It is a vast museum with a great body of work. It has, for example, the largest collection of British sculptor Henry Moore. On a search for Inuit work my wife and I stumbled into a room filled with the work of Canadian impressionists who had worked before and after the turn of the last century.
Maurice Cullen, "On the Saint Lawrence", 1897  

As we entered the next room we discovered the work of the Group of Seven and were caught like flies in amber. The Group of Seven were painters living in Toronto who first exhibited together in the spring of 1920 at the Art Gallery of Toronto. These artists were Franklin Carmichael, Lawren Harris, A.Y. Jackson, Frank Johnston, Arthur Lismer, J.E.H. MacDonald, and F.H. Varley.

Tom Thompson (first illustration) was a friend and major influence on the Group of Seven. He died three years before their first show. All of the seven were born in the late 19th century, and all shared a love for the Canadian wilderness.

Lawren Harris, "Spruce and Snow, Northern Ontario", 1916  

They painted landscapes with passion in difficult to get to locations. Their style was a bit more rugged than the Europeans who preceded them. Lawren Harris evolved a style that eventually had much in common with the American artist, Grant Wood.

A. Y. Jackson, "Maple and Birches", 1915

Unlike the others, Harris came from a family of great wealth and was the "leader" of the group, displaying both organization and determination. Although they shared a love of the natural landscape, all were quite individual in their painting philosophy.

They had to canoe and hike because there were no roads into northern Ontario and their wilderness locations. It was often cold as well. One result of the physical constraints they faced was the need to travel light and paint quickly. Consequently they painted on small boards that they could carry in number. Often these works would be sketches that would be used to paint larger canvases in the leisure of the studio.

Franklin Carmichael, "Autumn Hillside", 1920

Consequently, there are many of works on panels of about the same size (roughly 8.5"x11") that were executed quickly and energetically. The Art Gallery of Ontario has taken good advantage of this abundance by displaying dozens of these works grouped together in large arrays.

The Art Gallery of Ontario is an excellent way to spend a day in Toronto and the artists of the Canadian wilderness should not be missed.

Arthur Lismer, "The Guide's Home, Algonquin", 1914


All images except the Tom Thompson and Arthur Lismer from The Art Gallery of Ontario postcard collection © 1998
"The Group of Seven" © 1995 by Anne Newlands ISBN 1-895565-54-5 Firefly Books (U.S.) PO Box 1138 Ellicot Station, Buffalo NY 14205

Source for Tom Thompson and Arthur Lismer illustrations


"The McMichael Canadian Art Collection" © 1989 by Jean Blodgett, Megan Bice, David Wistow, and Lee-Ann Martin

McGraw Hill Ryerson Ltd, 330 Progress Ave, Scarborough, Ontario M1P2Z5, Canada


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