Canadian history · Drawing 19 of 37
The Group of Seven
1920
In 1920, seven painters in Toronto held their first show as the Group of Seven. They often painted outdoors, sketching lakes, rocks and trees in bright colours.
Look together
Which colours would you choose for the lake?
An idea to try
With an adult, look out a window or step outside and draw one tree, rock or cloud. Colour it with the colours you feel, not only the real ones.
For the adult reading along
A little more to discover
On May 7, 1920, Franklin Carmichael, Lawren Harris, A.Y. Jackson, Frank Johnston, Arthur Lismer, J.E.H. MacDonald and F.H. Varley opened their first exhibition as the Group of Seven at the Art Gallery of Toronto (now the Art Gallery of Ontario). All but Harris earned their living as commercial artists. Believing that a distinct Canadian art could come from direct contact with nature, they often painted together outdoors, then in the studio. Some critics mocked the show.
Their lakes and forests became symbols of Canada, but the paintings rarely show the First Nations whose homelands these are; critics, including Indigenous writers, point out that this fed the idea of an empty land. All seven were men; Emily Carr, influenced by the Group, was never a member. In front of a real landscape, ask your child: who lives here, and who lived here long ago?
Sources and context (3)
These links lead to other websites. Explore them with an adult. Source titles appear in their original language; some linked pages are in French.
- The Canadian Encyclopedia — Group of SevenFounded in 1920; original members; commercial artists except Harris; first exhibition at the Art Gallery of Toronto on 7 May 1920; painted together in the wilderness and in the Studio Building; bright colours; Emily Carr influenced but never a member.
- Foyer (Art Gallery of Ontario) — AGO 125: When Seven Became One (Group)Exhibition opened May 7, 1920 with 121 works; founding members, colleagues at Grip Ltd.; belief that distinct Canadian art could come from direct contact with nature; painting trips in northern Ontario; mocking critics.
- CBC Arts — Let’s liberate the Canadian landscape from the Group of Seven (essay, 2022)Critical view by an Indigenous writer: the Group seldom painted First Nations and depicted the landscape as uninhabited, erasing Indigenous perspectives.
Source review: 2026-09-24. Illustrations simplify places and scenes; they are not historical documents.