Nationalism and the Group of Seven

A group of seven sought to develop the first distinctly Canadian style of painting. Some of them worked as commercial illustrators, especially at Grip in Toronto, and were influenced by the current Art Nouveau style popular in Europe. They painted studio paintings of varying sizes along with many smaller works while in the backwoods of Canada’s then wilderness.

The group originated at the Toronto Arts and Letters Club before World War I, although the war delayed their official formation. Possible members were Franklin Carmichael, Lauren Harris, A. Y. Jackson, Frank Johnston, Arthur Lismer, J. E. H. MacDonald, and Frederick Varley. Harris helped finance many of the group’s wilderness excursions by furnishing custom covered wagons with sleeping and heating facilities and then leaving them at pre-arranged railroad track locations to be driven back when the group wanted to return. This was made possible by Harris’ family wealth and influence as part of the Massey Harris Combine, which supplied most of its products by train. Later, he and others helped finance the construction of a building that the band used as a studio in Toronto.

Emily Carr and various other artists were loosely associated with the Group of Seven, but never became members. Tom Thomson, often mentioned but never officially a member, died in 1917 in an accident on Lake Canoe in Northern Ontario. In the 1930s, members of the Big Seven decided to expand the club and formed the Canadian Group of Artists, consisting of 28 artists from across the country.