Who is the Group of Seven?
In 1920, a group of painters joined together and called
themselves the Group of Seven..
Original members: J.E.H. MacDonald,
Lawren Harris, A.Y. Jackson, Arthur Lismer,
Franklin Carmichael, F.H. Varley and Frank Johnston.
These were the first painters who painted scenery
with spirit and emotion.
A Canadian art movement began by people from
Toronto wanting to go on vacation in the north
to paint and relax.
There were many critics of this “new” style of art
because people were used to the European ways of
painting: soft, non-emotional depictions of real life.
Most of these artists were hired as commercial artists
at Grip Ltd. Grip Ltd. specialized in general artwork
and in design layouts for large stores like Eatons.
The Group of Seven held their 8th and final exhibition
in Toronto in December of 1931.
After the exhibition, an announcement was made that
the Group of Seven was finished.
This was when they started calling themselves
The Canadian Group of Painters.
Biography
She had 4 sisters and 1 brother.
Her parents died when she was a teenager and she then
lived with her older sister, Alice, in San Francisco, CA.
Emily taught art in Vancouver until 1913.
In 1927, Emily met the Group of Seven.
This inspired her to paint again.
When Emily was 70, her doctor told her to slow down,
so she began to write.
Emily died on March 2nd, 1945 and was buried
in the Carr Family Plot in Victoria, BC.
The St. James Inn, where Emily lived her last days,
has had sightings of Emily’s ghost from time to time.
Indian Church
1929
Oil on Canvas
http://www.inter-art.com/
Native Indians of northern
B.C.became a significant
influence on her works of art.
This is a painting of an
Indian Church located on
Nootka Island, which was off
of Vancouver Island.
Elements and Principles
of Design
Line: Curved lines in the leaves of the
trees. This creates a sense of “unity”.
Straight lines on the Church. This creates
“emphasis”.
Colour: The green of the trees “contrasts”
with the yellow of the Church to make it the
“focal point” of the painting.
Value: There are a “variety” of shades and
tints in the background.
Shape: There are repeating shapes in the
background to create a sense of “movement”.
Form: Some leaves are shown to have
weight to them and the shading of the church
shows that it’s a form as well.
Texture: The leaves and the church have
smooth surfaces, whereas the tree trunks
seem to have rough surfaces.
Totem Walk at Sitka
1917
Oil on Canvas
www.inter-art.com
Carr’s own style of
Post-Impressionism
brought emotion and
movement into a scene.
She had a specific
interest in Native Indian
Totem poles, which she
created many paintings of.
Elements and Principles
of Design
Line:
Curved lines in the
pathway in between the trees
and the overhead leaves.
Vertical lines for the totem
poles and tree trunks.
This creates a sense of “unity”.
Colour: The browns are
around the outside of the
painting. There are yellows on
the path.
Value: There are a “various”
of shades on the overhead and
tints in the on the path. (variety)
Shape: There are many ”different” shapes on the totem pole (variety).
There are repeating totem poles along the path to show “unity”.
Form: The trunks have shading to show them as 3D.
Texture: The path seems smooth, but the leaves overhead seem to be rough.
Somberness Sunlit
1930s
Oil on Canvas
www.inter-art.com
Light and wind take visible form
in this painting.
Emily created many tree
paintings, and this gave her
artworks many moods and
moments.
This painting shows the mood
of joy (light) trying to force its
way into the somber (dark)
forest.
Elements and Principles
of Design
Line: Horizontal lines of light
through the space in between the
trees show “rhythm”. Vertical,
curved lines for the tree trunks
also show a sense of
“movement”.
Colour: There are a lot of yellows
and greens thoughout the
painting, which give it a sense of
“harmony”.
Value: The lights and darks of the
lines give the painting a sense of
“unity”.
Form: The trunks have shading to show them as 3D and the bush on the left
also has shading.
"Pictures should be inspired by nature
but made in the soul of the artist....
Extract the essence of your subject and
paint yourself into it; forget the little petty
things that don’t count;
try for the bigger side....’’
Emily Carr
http://www.tomthomson.org/groupseven/index.html
http://collections.ic.gc.ca/EmilyCarrHomeWork/
http://www.david-kilgour.com/uneasy/chap06.htm
http://www.artchive.com/artchive/C/carr.html