The Group of Seven was founded in 1920 as an organization of self-proclaimed modern artists. They were one of the most important Canadian artists of the first decades of the 21st century. Their influence has extended to artists as diverse as abstract painter Jack Bush and the Painters Eleven, as well as Contemporary figurative painter Peter Doig. The Group of Seven consisted of Franklin Carmichael, Lawren Harris, A.Y Jackson, Franz Johnston, Arthur Lismer, J.E.H. MacDonald and F.H. Varley. They were initially drawn together by a common sense of frustration with the conservative quality of most Canadian art up to that point.
With their bright colors, tactile paint handling and simple yet dynamic forms, the Group of Seven transfigured the Canadian Shield, the dense northern boreal forest and endless lakes, into a transcendent, spiritual force. I enjoy looking at the Group of Seven's paintings. The way that they paint is so beautiful to look at for the viewer. I also admire how exact and perfect their use of paint and brush strokes are, everything is perfectly in place visually. Their colorful palettes make the paintings really pop, from their cool tone to warm tone paintings.
My painting recreation was of Lawren Harris's Lake Superior painting. I used acrylic paint as my medium for this. I didn't outline that painting with any harsh lines like he did but he managed to layer colors for shading without blending better than I did because I rushed and didn't wait for the first layer to dry which meant the layers mixed together. He was also more successful at creating shadows and depth in the sky, which I will work on.
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