Sunlight in a Wood, 1930, by Arthur Lismer (Canadian, 1885–1969)
Oil on canvas, 91.4 x 101.6 cm (36 x 40 in.)
Arthur Lismer was a prominent member of the Group of Seven. Born in Sheffield, England, in 1885, he arrived in Canada in 1911 and joined the legendary graphic design firm Grip Limited, where the Group of Seven story often begins. In 1913 he went on his first painting trip to Georgian Bay, which he called “a paradise for painters.” The experience of northern Ontario’s backcountry forged in Lismer a communion with the constancy of nature. His best-known works in oil are wilderness landscapes, expressionist in style with a use of raw colour and simplified form.
