Group of Seven

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the 'Group of Seven' and their relationship to the modern Canadian national identity. The paper examines the criticism of this traditional identity created by the art works and discusses how artists since then have followed, but also subverted this tradition. The paper suggests that the 'Group of Seven's' representations of Canada's wilderness in their paintings have became too 'traditional', that is to say rather than represent Canada, they are now used to construct and shape Canada and its landscape to resemble the paintings.

From the Paper:

"The Group of Seven aimed at developing a truly Canadian artistic expression. In order to achieve this they turned towards Canadian landscape and wilderness as a source of inspiration. However, what they managed to develop an image that is only partially Canadian. The fact that they erased an important part of it, and thus helped developed an incomplete image of their country is the direct result of absence of aboriginal elements in their work. By this, I do not only mean a presence of aboriginal people and their lifestyle documented on the landscape paintings. The closed mind to the influence of traditional aboriginal culture is also obvious in the opus of Group of Seven. The truly Canadian artistic expression and the painting of Canadian wilderness cannot exclude the Native peoples. As such it should be the blend of the Western ideas with traditional culture. Some have argued (Campbell, 2003; Jessup, 2006) that the aboriginal art has bended under the influence of the settlers' art more than vice-versa, a fact that is a reflection of colonial policies and trends as shown in the examples of photographs. The line where the settlers and native culture mixes is the true source of images of Canada of that period. The neglect of the aboriginals and their culture in artistic presentation of wilderness has wilder connotations. Their culture is underrepresented in the Canadian museums and galleries. Considering that modern Canada is a multicultural country, continuation of this trend can once again paint a different Canadian Landscape."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bordo, Jonathan. (1993) "Jack Pine - Wilderness Sublime or the Erasure of the Aboriginal Presence from the Landscape". Journal of Canadian Studies. 27(4): 98-128.
• Campbell, Claire. (2003) "'Our Dear North Country'" Regional Identity And National Meaning In Ontario's Georgian Bay". Journal of Canadian Studies. 37(4): 68-94.
• Jessup, Lynda. (2006) "Landscapes of Sport, Landscapes of Exclusion: The 'Sportsman's Paradise' in Late-Ninetheen-Century Canadian Painting". Journal of Canadian Studies. 40(1): 71-124.
• Mastin, Catharine M. (2002) "East Views West: Group Artists in the Rocky Mountains". In The Group of Seven in Western Canada. Catharine M. Mastin (ed.) Toronto: Key Porter Books
• Mellen, Peter. (1970) "The Group of Seven". Toronto: McClelland and Stewart Limited

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