0:00

…

0:06

This year we relied
on the arts to uplift

0:09

us, connect us, and
inspire us more than ever

0:11

The visual, performing,
and written arts tell

0:14

our province’s story,
and keeps our past

0:16

alive. The Group of Seven
were amongst the

0:18

first Canadian artists
to capture the natural

0:21

wonders of our home.
Their iconic landscapes,

0:24

striking colours, and
dynamic shapes have

0:27

us in, and sparked our
imaginations for 100 years.

0:31

Artists continue to enrich our
lives, promote creativity and

0:34

innovation and contribute
to our economy.

0:37

I encourage all Albertans
to support local artists,

0:40

galleries, theatres,
and venues in any

0:43

way that you can.
We will need the support

0:46

now; more than ever
so that they can tell

0:48

our story for the next
100 years and beyond.

0:50

…

0:52

Hello – my name is Catherine
Crowston, and I am the

0:55

Executive Director and Chief
Curator here at the Art Gallery

0:58

of Alberta. It is my pleasure to
welcome you to this special

1:01

preview of our most
recent exhibition: 100 Years:

1:04

The Group of Seven and
Other Voices, presented

1:07

by Capital Power.

1:09

2020 marks the 100th
anniversary of the famous

1:12

Canadian group of artists,
known as The Group of Seven.

1:15

The Group of Seven formed
in Toronto in 1920, and was

1:19

Canada’s first self-proclaimed
organization of modern artists.

1:23

…

1:25

The original 7 members of the
Group befriended each other

1:29

in the years between 1911
and 1913, and at that time

1:34

their circle included Tom
Thomson who was an

1:36

an integral and influential
force, but was never actually

1:40

a member of the Group
itself due to his death in 1917

1:43

It was only after their first
exhibition at the Art Museum

1:46

of Toronto (now the Art Gallery
of Ontario) in May of 1920

1:50

that the Group first presented
themselves as a unified

1:54

collective. To the outrage
of the artistic establishment

1:57

at the time, these artists
shifted their work away from

2:01

close imitation of nature
in painting – toward a more

2:05

evocative expression of
emotion and mood, with

2:08

vibrant colours, brushwork
and rugged wilderness scenes.

2:11

This exhibition: 100 Years
The Group of Seven and Other

2:15

Voices features paintings by
Tom Thomson and the 10

2:19

members of Canada’s of
the Group from the AGA

2:22

collection. The exhibition also
includes work by other artists

2:25

who were mentors, colleagues
and students of Group

2:28

members, as well as
some who worked entirely

2:31

independent of their
influence, to offer a more

2:33

expansive view of Canadian
art from this time period.

2:36

The exhibition was curated
by Danielle Siemens, the

2:39

Collections Manager and
Curatorial Associate here at

2:42

the AGA, who will talk a little
bit about a few of the works

2:45

in the exhibition and give
you an introduction

2:48

to these wonderful artists.

2:50

…

2:52

So we’re going to start our
preview tour with these two

2:56

paintings by Tom Thompson.
Now contrary to popular

3:00

belief, Tom Thompson wasn’t
an official member of the

3:03

group. However he
was very important to

3:05

to their early years. And
he was very influential in

3:09

his style and approach to
the landscape. Now we’re

3:13

this painting on the bottom,
it’s titled “November” and

3:16

it’s from 1913. This
painting here might not

3:20

have the bold, expressive
colours that we’re used to

3:24

seeing from the group, but
it’s a really nice example of

3:27

their early development.
If you get up close, you can

3:30

see rough, quick brush work.
So you really get the sense of

3:33

this capturing a fleeting
moment in time. The colour

3:37

palette is muted and really
quite dark and moody, giving

3:41

us the sense of the
changing seasons in the fall

3:44

on a cool autumn day.

3:46

…

3:47

So now we’re going
to look at a work by

3:50

Arthur Lismer, it’s
entitled “Winter”, and it

3:53

comes from 1920. Lismer,
like most of his Group

3:56

of Seven colleagues started his
career in commercial graphic

4:00

art, and you really get a sense
of his design sensibility in the

4:04

carefully laid out composition.
So you have this lone tree in

4:08

the foreground that really
draws your eye in and a clearly

4:11

delineated mid-ground
and background.

4:14

With these kind of curvilinear
lines that draw your eye

4:16

into and throughout
the image.

4:18

He was also working in
an expressionistic style, so

4:22

If you get up real close,
you can see these rough,

4:25

quick little brush strokes and
this really bold sense of colour

4:29

and light. So you can get a
sense of the light reflecting

4:32

from the snow in the foreground
in the foreground tree

4:34

as well as this really
bright orange which gives us

4:37

the sense of a winter sunset.
And this lends itself to what

4:41

the Group of Seven was trying
to cultivate: this idea that

4:44

landscape was uninhabited
and ripe for exploration.

4:47

So I hope that you can make
it down to the AGA to see this

4:50

exhibition: 100 years, the
Group of Seven and Other

4:53

Voices which is sponsored
by Capital Power.

4:55

…

4:57

From stunning mountains to
everlasting bright blue prairie

5:00

skies, we are extremely lucky
as Albertans to be surrounded

5:03

by some of the greatest
natural views in the world.

5:06

I think we’ve all looked to
nature to ground and uplift

5:08

ourselves, be it spending
time wandering the river

5:11

valley or gathering around
a fire with those closest to us

5:14

nature truly has a way of
inspiring us, reminding us of

5:18

what’s important and calming
our most pressing concerns.

5:21

COVID-19 is no small concern
and has greatly challenged our

5:25

way of life, but as a
community, I continue to be

5:28

inspired by the ways and
means we, as resilient

5:31

Edmontonians and Albertans,
have found to support each

5:34

other and continue to find
joy together, including

5:38

retreating to nature as
we enjoy the remaining sunny

5:40

skies of summer. On
behalf of Capital Power

5:43

I invite you to experience
Canada’s natural treasures

5:46

through the eyes of Canada’s
preeminent 20th century

5:49

landscape artists: The Group
of Seven. Together with your

5:53

Art Gallery of Alberta, Capital
Power is pleased to present

5:56

the 100 Years: The Group of
even and Other Voices exhibit

6:00

from August 29th to March 13th.

6:04

Come to your Art Gallery of
Alberta and escape in the

6:07

visions of exceptional
artists and safely take

6:10

time to enjoy ourselves.
Thank you.

6:12

.

No results found