Group of Seven was a school of Canadian landscape painters. Members of the group sought to develop a distinctively Canadian style of painting through an expressive response to the landscape of northern Canada. The group’s style featured brilliant colors and free brushstrokes. The original members of the group were Franklin Carmichael, Lawren Harris, A. Y. Jackson, Franz Johnston, Arthur Lismer, J. E. H. MacDonald, and Frederick H. Varley. All lived in Toronto, Ontario.
The group’s origin dated back to the period from 1911 to 1913. In those years, the seven artists plus Tom Thomson, who died in 1917, began sketching and painting together. The Group of Seven was formally established at its first exhibition in 1920. Despite initial opposition from art critics, the group became a dominant force in Canadian art in the 1920’s and 1930’s.
The group’s influence continued as careers of the artists and the membership changed. Varley began to emphasize portraits instead of landscapes, and Harris turned to an abstract style. Johnston left the group in 1926, and A. J. Casson was added that same year. MacDonald died in 1932. To broaden its geographical base, the group admitted Edwin Holgate of Montreal, Quebec, in 1930 and L. L. FitzGerald of Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1932. The group held its last exhibition in 1931. Two years later, it dissolved to give way to the broader-based and larger Canadian Group of Painters.
