Topic: Introducing the Group of 7 Notes by Diana Gordon The Group of 7 officially formed in 1920. They were friends and co- workers for a decade before naming the group. Many met at the Arts and Letters Club in Toronto (above photo). They were a Toronto-based group of male artists including Canadian-born Franklin Carmichael, Lawren Harris, Franz (Frank) Johnston and A.Y. Jackson from Montreal; and northern British-born Arthur Lismer, J.E.H. MacDonald, and Frank Varley. Tom Thomson died before the formation of the group. In 1926 A. J. Casson replaces Johnston. (Next group 1930s included Edwin Holgate and Emily Carr from B.C.) T.T. E.H. E.C. Images: The Canadian Encyclopedia and University of Victoria online Introduction to the Group of 7 Page 2 of 5 Many were trained in Europe – Berlin, Brussels and Paris. Many worked as commercial artists in Toronto as did Tom Thomson, who was a “pre- member” of the group. Lawren Harris and Dr. James MacCallum supplied funding and a Studio Building on Severn St. in Toronto. Thomson lived in the backyard “shack”. These artists were influenced early on by Tom Thomson’s love of Algonquin Park and his passionately rendered sketches and oil studies. Painting Locations Plein air painting - outdoor in the bush. Painted oil on board, 8 by 10 inch studies. Also did watercolour and pencil sketches. Before World War I they went north to the Canadian Shield, individually or sometimes in small groups, by train then canoe then hiking, staying in tents or cabins. They worked up sketches into large canvases in the Toronto Studio. Introduced to Algonquin Park by Thomson, to Georgian Bay by patron Dr. MacCallum who had a cottage at Go Home Bay; also the Killarney area; a box car set up by Harris in the Algoma area in the 1920s. Later north of Lake Superior, the Rockies, the Arctic, Vancouver, rural Ontario and Quebec. “A Canadian School of Painting” Lucius R. O’Brien Sunrise on the Saguenay, Cape Trinity (1880). Oil on canvas. 90 x 127 cm. National Gallery of Canada Introduction to the Group of 7 Page 3 of 5 Group of 7 were reacting against: They were for: Imitating French pastoral scenes in A common creative goal – develop a soft, blended colours using Canadian school of painting atmospheric effects (like Canadian painter Lucius O’Brien above) Old-country aesthetic of lush Dutch “the whole environment of the or English rural paintings – cows, artist in Canada was different from windmills, detailed leafy vegetation the artist in England and Europe” (like Canadian painter Horatio (Lawren Harris) Walker) The Group of 7 formed in 1920: “Picturesque beauty” *after traumatic events of WWI Foreign landscapes rather than *after trauma of death of Tom local ones Thomson in 1917 Purpose and Methods As Modern Period, Post-Impressionist painters, the Group of Seven can teach us a great deal to further our own responses and artistic approaches to Landscape Painting. Their stated purpose was “to develop a new style of Canadian painting based on the land” - “adventurers in paint” - explorers of the Canadian wilderness (Newlands 1995). AY Jackson says they were influenced by Cezanne and van Gogh, which can be seen in their expressive brushwork. The main subjects were an unpopulated, rugged, natural wilderness – Lakes, Forests, Rocks, Mountains, and Sky - in various seasons, weather, time of day, and in changing wind and light conditions. Rugged, vibrant, solitary, majestic are all themes expressed in their work. Introduction to the Group of 7 Page 4 of 5 Their modernist techniques included: 1. Simplified, Geometric Shapes 2. Rhythmic, Curvilinear Designs 3. Use of bold colour harmonies (and semi-neutrals) 4. Expressive Linear Brushwork AY Jackson Nellie Lake, Killarney 1933 McMichael Franklin Carmichael The Ice House Coldwell Lake Superior (AGH Watercolour) JEH MacDonald A Rapids in the North ( AGH-Oil) Where the Eagles Soar, c. 1920 Franz Johnston (Canadian) AGO Introduction to the Group of 7 Page 5 of 5 Reference Sources Reference Books* (among many) The Group of Seven and Tom Thomson by Anne Newlands The Best of the Group of Seven by Joan Murray and Lawren Harris The Group of Seven by Charles C. Hill In the Footsteps of the Group of Seven by Jim and Sue Waddington They found and photographed many of the painting locations. The juxtaposition of modern photos and the G of 7 paintings is fascinating. The Group of Seven and Tom Thomson by David Silcox Tom Thomson: The Silence and the Storm Hardcover 2017 by David Silcox and Harold Town *The Shop @AGH in the Art Gallery of Hamilton has a wide selection of books, cards and prints on the Group of 7*. Used Book stores often have Group of 7 books. Calendars have good reproductions and are half-priced after Christmas. Major Art Collections National Gallery of Canada Ottawa, Art Gallery of Ontario Toronto, McMichael Canadian Art Collection Kleinberg, Art Gallery of Hamilton Online Resources National Film Boards shorts on individual painters during their lifetime http://blog.nfb.ca/blog/2016/10/13/group-of-seven/ TVO documentaries including https://tvo.org/video/documentaries/painted-land-in-search-of-the- group-of-seven Painted Land: Author and wilderness photographer Joanie and Gary McGuffin and art historian Michael Burtch set out to find the actual locations in northern Ontario that inspired the legendary Group of Seven and some of their most iconic works of art. The film weaves the paintings and fascinating stories of these artists with the modern-day journey, taking viewers through some of Canada's most stunning landscapes.(TVO) Also Search on You Tube and Google Introducing the Group of 7, Purpose, Methods, References…Updated Sept 2018…Notes by Diana Gordon .