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Kelly Holinshead
One century ago, a
middle-aged, fledgling
artist from Toronto was
invited to Huntsville
Ontario, for a visit. This
visit would eventually
lead the artist to become
the foremost painter in
Canadian history and
would ignite the birth of
Canadian art and culture.
In the spring of 1912,
Huntsville resident Dr. J. M.
McRuer invited his close
friend Tom Thomson to
come visit him and his
family in Huntsville. During
the visit, Thomson and the
McRuer family enjoyed
many outdoor activities
such as hikes and canoe
rides on Fairy Lake. At
one point during the stay,
McRuer and Thomson
From the permanent collection of The Tom Thomson Art Gallery,
Owen Sound, ON
were talking about art and painting. It was
the Dr. who suggested that Tom would
find the scenery in Algonquin Park to be
inspirational to his painting. That same
summer, Thomson took his friend’s advice
and went to Algonquin Park to forge his
way into the annals of Canadian history
and folklore.
Prior to the summer of 1912, Thomson
and a group of artist friends and coworkers
were searching for a unique and fresh style
of painting. Something that would capture
the essence of what Canada was and who its
people are. Thomson was being mentored
and encouraged to become a painter;
however, Tom did not think his painting skills
were very strong and therefore was often
discouraged about becoming an artist.
Kelly Holinshead
[ By Gerry Lantaigne, Artistic Director ]
Thomson’s first trip to
Huntsville and Algonquin
Park is the genesis of
his genius
During that first summer in Algonquin
Park, Thomson began sketching the scenery
of the Park on small wooden panels using
oil paint. These panels would slide into a
small wooden box that could hold up to 10
paintings and Tom would go on to a new
location and sketch some more. Not being
very confident about his art skills, Tom did
not see too much merit in the collection
of paintings he made that summer. With
the end of the summer season, Thomson
returned to Toronto to
get back to work. Upon
his return, his artist friends
and coworkers were
astonished at the work
Tom had accomplished
on his Algonquin trip. The
paintings Tom made were
of a subject matter that
had yet to be painted by
Canadian artists; rocks, trees
and lakes… the rugged
Canadian wilderness.
For a group of painters
trying to come up with a
unique Canadian identity
in art, what better subject
matter to explore! Tom
had given them a ubiquitous
Canadian subject matter,
but there was something
more in the paintings, more
than just the subject matter.
There were the beginnings
of an individual style of painting showing
through in the summer works by Tom:
quick frenetic brush strokes, thick paint,
sweeping skies, and, most importantly, a
daring and uncommon use of very bright
colours. Thomson was not convinced of the
excellence in his work; his group of friends,
however, were ecstatic.
They all quickly began to work in a similar
fashion to Tom, painting the wilderness
and experimenting with bold colour. This
practice in the art world was not well
accepted by critics and the art establishment;
showings of their art often brought about
negative reviews. This did not discourage the
young group of artists and Tom continued to
visit Algonquin Park and paint every summer.
Continued on Page 35...
From the permanent collection
of The Tom Thomson Art
Gallery, Owen Sound, ON
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