Eastern Group of Painters
Encyclopedia
The Eastern Group of Painters was a Canadian artists collective
founded in 1938 in Montreal
, Quebec
. The group included Montreal artists whose common interest was painting and an art for art's sake
aesthetic, not the espousal of a nationalist theory as was the case with the Group of Seven
or the Canadian Group of Painters
. The group’s members included Alexander Bercovitch, Goodridge Roberts
, Eric Goldberg
, Jack Weldon Humphrey
, John Goodwin Lyman
, and Jori Smith
. Goldberg and Lyman were both well represented by Max Stern
's Dominion Gallery in Montreal.
By the late 1930s, many Canadian artists began resenting the quasi-national institution the Group of Seven
had become. As a result of a growing rejection of the view that the efforts of a group of artists based largely in Ontario
constituted a national vision or oeuvre, many artists - notably those in Quebec
- began feeling ignored and undermined. The Eastern Group of Painters formed to counter this notion and restore variation of purpose, method, and geography to Canadian art.
John Lyman
's Contemporary Arts Society (1939–48) (in French, Société d'art contemporain) evolved out of the Eastern Group of Painters.
Artist collective
An artist collective is an initiative that is the result of a group of artists working together, usually under their own management, towards shared aims...
founded in 1938 in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. The group included Montreal artists whose common interest was painting and an art for art's sake
Art for art's sake
"Art for art's sake" is the usual English rendering of a French slogan, from the early 19th century, l'art pour l'art, and expresses a philosophy that the intrinsic value of art, and the only "true" art, is divorced from any didactic, moral or utilitarian function...
aesthetic, not the espousal of a nationalist theory as was the case with the Group of Seven
Group of Seven (artists)
The Group of Seven, sometimes known as the Algonquin school, were a group of Canadian landscape painters from 1920-1933, originally consisting of Franklin Carmichael , Lawren Harris , A. Y. Jackson , Franz Johnston , Arthur Lismer , J. E. H. MacDonald , and Frederick Varley...
or the Canadian Group of Painters
Canadian Group of Painters
The Canadian Group of Painters was a collective of 28 painters from across Canada which came together as group in 1933. They succeeded the disbanded Group of Seven, whose paintings of the Canadian wilderness had been a strong influence on Canadian art....
. The group’s members included Alexander Bercovitch, Goodridge Roberts
Goodridge Roberts
William Goodridge Roberts was a Canadian painter known for his landscape paintings and unassuming still lifes and interiors.Goodridge Roberts was the son of poet and novelist Theodore Goodridge Roberts and Frances Seymour Allen...
, Eric Goldberg
Eric Goldberg (artist)
Eric Goldberg was a Jewish-Canadian painter, born in 1890 in Berlin, Germany. Goldberg was influenced by the art of Pierre-Auguste Renoir at an early age...
, Jack Weldon Humphrey
Jack Humphrey
Jack Weldon Humphrey was a Canadian landscape and figure painter, mainly in watercolour.-Biography:Humphrey was born in Saint John, New Brunswick. He studied at the school of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, under Phillip Hale and painting at the National Academy of Design, the Arts Students...
, John Goodwin Lyman
John Goodwin Lyman
John Goodwin Lyman was a Canadian modernist painter active largely in Montreal. In the 1930s he did much to promote modern art in Canada, founding the Contemporary Art Society in 1939...
, and Jori Smith
Jori Smith
Jori Smith, CM was a key figure in the 1930s in initiating Canada's modernist art movement. Her early training was at the Art Association of Montreal where she studied under Randolph Hewton in 1922. Subsequently her studies took her to the Ecole des Beaux Arts and in 1938 she became the only woman...
. Goldberg and Lyman were both well represented by Max Stern
Max Stern (gallery owner)
Max Stern was a German-Canadian arts benefactor, art historian, and owner of Montreal's landmark Dominion Gallery .- Life & legacy :...
's Dominion Gallery in Montreal.
By the late 1930s, many Canadian artists began resenting the quasi-national institution the Group of Seven
Group of Seven (artists)
The Group of Seven, sometimes known as the Algonquin school, were a group of Canadian landscape painters from 1920-1933, originally consisting of Franklin Carmichael , Lawren Harris , A. Y. Jackson , Franz Johnston , Arthur Lismer , J. E. H. MacDonald , and Frederick Varley...
had become. As a result of a growing rejection of the view that the efforts of a group of artists based largely in Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
constituted a national vision or oeuvre, many artists - notably those in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
- began feeling ignored and undermined. The Eastern Group of Painters formed to counter this notion and restore variation of purpose, method, and geography to Canadian art.
John Lyman
John Goodwin Lyman
John Goodwin Lyman was a Canadian modernist painter active largely in Montreal. In the 1930s he did much to promote modern art in Canada, founding the Contemporary Art Society in 1939...
's Contemporary Arts Society (1939–48) (in French, Société d'art contemporain) evolved out of the Eastern Group of Painters.