Locating Landscapes – 17th November, 2016

I spent today’s research time looking in to the locations of each painting. I want to know if the locations depicted in this calendar are representative of Canadian Landscapes or if they are biased toward any one region. Through quick maps searching, matching the painting titles, and lots of general google searching, I managed to plot most of the paintings on a map, with what quite precise accuracy.

What can I learn from these findings? Clearly from the map I have attached, most of the paintings are of locations in Ontario, which makes sense since the Group of Seven were based out of Toronto. Is it valid, then, for us to assume that these landscapes are representative of Canadian Wilderness as a whole? I do not think so. To be truly representative, the sample should have samples from all regions of the country, which is difficult to do considering what a hulking landmass Canada is. It strikes me odd that we consider the Group of Seven to represent Canada when in truth they merely represent a small part of it. I'd like to explore this further at a later time.

I wonder what these places look like today, and indeed what the artists saw in the moment of painting the works. How much of the landscape has changed since then?

What I also find interesting in examining these paintings in this way is that there is a lot of thought put into the progression of these works as the months progress in the calendar. The colour palette seems to shift with the seasons. I wrote briefly on how the Group of Seven aimed to be inspired by the raw energy of the wilderness and channeled that through their art. Oxford Reference has defined the group’s art as being characterized by “brilliant colour and bold brushwork” (Glaves-Smith) which is very evident in these paintings. They give a sense of what the group perceived to be the rawness of nature. The paintings evoke certain emotions. For some reason, it makes me think of The Heart of the Ancient Wood and the theme of wilderness being therapeutic. When Kirstie leaves the town to live in the woods, she gradually becomes healthier, stronger and happier (Roberts). Wilderness has great power over Kirstie, and likewise, the paintings have power over the viewer’s emotions. It is clearly evident why Icebergs, Davis Strait might have been paired with December, for the colours invoke snow and winter. I see this as a sort of therapeutic wilderness, or rather, an expansion into exploring how wilderness can have profound effects on the mind. One can look at each painting and feel some feeling associated with the month the painting is displayed with.