Seven Questions About The Canadian Group of Seven

The Canadian Group of Seven painters collectively produced striking works during the early part of the 20th century, and asserted that the beauty of Canada’s landscape was more than worthy of being artistically depicted. Their intentions to portray their country in a distinctive style and to cast off any lingering European attitudes of cultural snobbery also ran parallel to Canada’s own emerging national identity.

The Group of Seven was influenced by other artistic movements of the time, such as Art Nouveau, Post-Impressionism, Japonisme and contemporary Scandinavian painting, but they adapted what inspired them and created their own dynamic. Several of them met while working at Grip, Ltd., a commercial art firm in Toronto, and their first collective exhibit was held in May of 1920.

Seven questions about the Seven (in no particular order) are:

1. Who was the youngest member of the original Group? ** Franklin Carmichael (1890-1945)

2. Who painted The Red Maple in 1914, a work that is sometimes noted as being symbolic of Canada’s entry into World War I? ** A.Y. (Alexander Young) Jackson (1882-1974)

3. Which Group of Seven member was born in Sheffield, England and was a Unitarian? ** Arthur Lismer (1885-1969)

4. Who reportedly encouraged the Group of Seven to become more than just seven friends and artists? ** Lawren Harris (1885-1970)

"Without Harris there would have been no Group of Seven. He provided the stimulus; it was he who encouraged us to always take the bolder course, to find new trails." A.Y. Jackson

5. Who was also born in Sheffield, England and served as a combat artist during World War I? ** Frederick Varley (1881-1969) Take a trip back in time to 1965 and watch a CBC interview with Varley at age 84.

6. Who painted The Tangled Garden in 1916, capturing a scene from his woodland Ontario property known as Four Elms? ** J.E.H. MacDonald (1873-1932)

7. Whose departure in 1920 turned the Group of Seven into a sextet, until A.J. Casson joined in 1926? ** Frank a/k/a Franz Johnston (1888-1949) left the Group and Toronto in 1920 to accept a position at the Winnipeg School of Art.

Bonus question:

Which good friend and artistic ally of the Group of Seven played both the violin and mandolin? ** Tom Thomson (1877-1917)

Although painter Tom Thomson was not an official member, his friendship with the others and love of nature were integral to the Group of Seven’s formation. Thomson is fairly well-known for his unfortunate and mysterious death at Algonquin Park in July of 1917, an incident that could have either been accidental or a homicide. Had Thomson lived beyond his thirty-ninth year he would have very likely produced many more paintings and become one of Canada’s premier artists.