Drawnonward
Toronto, ON -- A collective of artists, Drawnonward, featured in a Juno nominated documentary have followed in the footsteps of Canada’s famed Group of Seven by traveling the country to capture her images on canvas. ENGINE GALLERY in Toronto’s Distillery District presents their latest work at an opening reception this Thursday, February 4, 2010 from 6-10 PM. The show closes February 21, 2010.
90 Years ago Lawren Harris drew together a group of seven artists. In that same year he visited the Algoma district in Northern Ontario where he painted one of his most famous works entitled 'Algoma Hill’. Over 70 years later another group of Canadian artists would make the trek to Algoma together in the spirit of the Group of Seven to capture the whispers and shouts of the Northern landscape and bring them South.
This group of artists - called Drawnonward - have taken their inspiration from the Group of Seven. Their mandate is to explore Canada's landscape through painting and have covered more than 100,000 kilometres in its pursuit. Traveling by retrofitted school bus, converted milk truck, train, fishing boat, ship, canoe, kayak, snowshoe and ski, Drawnonward has journeyed between both shores of Canada. Touring the Queen Charlotte Islands in British Columbia; hiking the northern stretches the Yukon; traversing down the icy slopes of the Gaspe peninsula; cruising on a Russian exploration ship through the waters of Newfoundland and the Arctic - they have strapped on paint boxes, carted supplies and put all of their journeys down on panels, paper and canvas.
One of the artists, Gordon Kemp, uses his farm in Duntroon, Ontario as a canvas. He creates sculptures from organic found materials and manipulates the growth patterns of plants and trees on his farm. Also a traditional oil on canvas painter Kemp will have several new works in the show.
“The work of the Group of Seven was used as a starting point for most of us,” says Kemp. Kemp was one of the original artists who traveled to Algoma in 1994 and was featured in their documentary which aired on CBC and Bravo!.
While the number in the group has fluctuated over the years it seems fitting how 90 years after the original group of seven emerged that it is seven who will exhibit in their ENGINE GALLERY show: Jeremy Down, Paul Mantrop, David Marshak, Steve McDonald, Christopher Roberts, Rob Saley and Gordon Kemp
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Mandy Cheetham, Director of Marketing ENGINE GALLERY 416-
