George Cuthbertson
Encyclopedia
George Cuthbertson was a Canadian artist, researcher, and author. He was born in Toronto, Ontario.
, and the Westmount Academy in Montreal, Quebec. He studied with John David Kelly in Toronto and with William Brymner
at the Art Association of Montreal, Quebec. At 13, he worked in the summer on a steamer as an able bodied seaman in Montreal.
in Kingston, Ontario
in 1914, but left after one year. At 17, he joined the Dover Patrol of the Royal Canadian Navy. At the time, he was the Navy's youngest commissioned officer. He served from 1915 to 1918, on trawlers, mine sweepers, and mine layers. Upon leaving the service, he operated a woollen mill at Thurso, Quebec
, where he lived for the remainder of his life. He died there in 1969.
, Saguenay, (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, Ltd., 1930). Cuthbertson also authored and illustrated Freshwater, a history of the Great Lakes
, published by MacMillan, in 1931.
He became a prominent marine painter, exhibiting in major centres in Canada and the United States
. His works are found in the collection of the National Archives of Canada, the Canada Steamship Lines Maritime Collection and various North American marine museums.
The Canada Steamship Lines exhibited his fully worked watercolours and maps with accompanying catalogues, in 1928 and 1942. In 1942, the exhibition travelled to London, Ontario
and Fort William, Ontario
and to the Mariners Museum in Newport, Virginia
.
on the Great Lakes
.
At the National Archives of Canada, The George Cuthbertson Collection (1900-1969) consists of:
The Marine Museum of the Great Lakes in Kingston, Ontario
features several of his works:
Maritime Subjects include:
Early life and training
He studied at the Toronto Model School, the University of TorontoUniversity of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
, and the Westmount Academy in Montreal, Quebec. He studied with John David Kelly in Toronto and with William Brymner
William Brymner
William Brymner, CMG was a Canadian art teacher and a figure and landscape painter.-Early years:Born in Greenock, Scotland, the son of Douglas Brymner the first Dominion Archivist and Jean Thomson, he moved with his family to Melbourne, Lower Canada in 1857. In 1864, his family moved to Montreal...
at the Art Association of Montreal, Quebec. At 13, he worked in the summer on a steamer as an able bodied seaman in Montreal.
Military service
He entered the Royal Military College of CanadaRoyal Military College of Canada
The Royal Military College of Canada, RMC, or RMCC , is the military academy of the Canadian Forces, and is a degree-granting university. RMC was established in 1876. RMC is the only federal institution in Canada with degree granting powers...
in Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
in 1914, but left after one year. At 17, he joined the Dover Patrol of the Royal Canadian Navy. At the time, he was the Navy's youngest commissioned officer. He served from 1915 to 1918, on trawlers, mine sweepers, and mine layers. Upon leaving the service, he operated a woollen mill at Thurso, Quebec
Thurso, Quebec
Thurso is a city in the Papineau Regional County Municipality in the Outaouais region of western Quebec. It is located on the Ottawa River, and is within Canada's National Capital Region...
, where he lived for the remainder of his life. He died there in 1969.
Professional career
Along with Paul Caron, Cuthbertson illustrated Blodwen Davies’ book about the Saguenay RiverSaguenay River
The Saguenay River is a major river of Quebec, Canada.It drains Lac Saint-Jean in the Laurentian Highlands, leaving at Alma and running east, and passes the city of Saguenay. It drains into the Saint Lawrence River at Tadoussac....
, Saguenay, (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, Ltd., 1930). Cuthbertson also authored and illustrated Freshwater, a history of the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
, published by MacMillan, in 1931.
He became a prominent marine painter, exhibiting in major centres in Canada and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. His works are found in the collection of the National Archives of Canada, the Canada Steamship Lines Maritime Collection and various North American marine museums.
The Canada Steamship Lines exhibited his fully worked watercolours and maps with accompanying catalogues, in 1928 and 1942. In 1942, the exhibition travelled to London, Ontario
London, Ontario
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...
and Fort William, Ontario
Fort William, Ontario
Fort William was a city in Northern Ontario, located on the Kaministiquia River, at its entrance to Lake Superior. It amalgamated with Port Arthur and the townships of Neebing and McIntyre to form the city of Thunder Bay in January 1970. Ever since then it has been the largest city in Northwestern...
and to the Mariners Museum in Newport, Virginia
Newport, Virginia
Newport is an unincorporated community in Giles County, Virginia, United States, with the ZIP code of 24128.-External links:*...
.
Works
Many of his works describe the history of shippingShipping
Shipping has multiple meanings. It can be a physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo, by land, air, and sea. It also can describe the movement of objects by ship.Land or "ground" shipping can be by train or by truck...
on the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
.
At the National Archives of Canada, The George Cuthbertson Collection (1900-1969) consists of:
- 91 watercolours, drawingDrawingDrawing is a form of visual art that makes use of any number of drawing instruments to mark a two-dimensional medium. Common instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoal, chalk, pastels, markers, styluses, and various metals .An artist who...
s and sketchesSketch (drawing)A sketch is a rapidly executed freehand drawing that is not usually intended as a finished work...
. - 146 watercolours, gouacheGouacheGouache[p], also spelled guache, the name of which derives from the Italian guazzo, water paint, splash or bodycolor is a type of paint consisting of pigment suspended in water. A binding agent, usually gum arabic, is also present, just as in watercolor...
, pen and ink. - 107 drawings pen and ink, pencil.
- 41 photographPhotographA photograph is an image created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic imager such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are created using a camera, which uses a lens to focus the scene's visible wavelengths of light into a reproduction of...
s b&w. - 4 paintingPaintingPainting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
s temperaTemperaTempera, also known as egg tempera, is a permanent fast-drying painting medium consisting of colored pigment mixed with a water-soluble binder medium . Tempera also refers to the paintings done in this medium. Tempera paintings are very long lasting, and examples from the 1st centuries AD still exist...
. - 1 print engravingEngravingEngraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard, usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an intaglio printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing...
. - 3 reproductions photo-mechanical, color process.
The Marine Museum of the Great Lakes in Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
features several of his works:
- drawings as a child in Toronto, Ontario
- wartime watercolours,
- charcoalCharcoalCharcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of carbon, and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen...
study sketches done after the war.
Maritime Subjects include:
- Esquimalt, British ColumbiaEsquimalt, British ColumbiaThe Township of Esquimalt is a municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. It is bordered to the east by the provincial capital, Victoria, to the south by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, to the west by Esquimalt Harbour and Royal Roads, to the northwest by the...
Barquentine "Puako", "Fremona" & "Tory Head"; Dugout CanoeCanoeA canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...
, "Her Majesty's ShipHer Majesty's ShipHer or His Majesty's Ship is the ship prefix used for ships of the navy in some monarchies, either formally or informally.-HMS:* In the British Royal Navy, it refers to the king or queen of the United Kingdom as appropriate at the time...
(HMS) Rainbow and (HMS) Algeria" - Vancouver, British Columbia Harbour; "M.L. in Heavy Weather"; "Egeria Cutter"; "Sir Henry Harness";
- Halifax, Nova ScotiaCity of HalifaxHalifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
"Kingfisher"; "Triumph" at Halifax; Canadian SubmarineSubmarineA submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
s Arriving at Halifax; - Warwick and Knapton Canal;
- Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa RiverOttawa RiverThe Ottawa River is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. For most of its length, it now defines the border between these two provinces.-Geography:...
-Lake ChamplainLake ChamplainLake Champlain is a natural, freshwater lake in North America, located mainly within the borders of the United States but partially situated across the Canada—United States border in the Canadian province of Quebec.The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of...
(Barge Series); Barge "Hon. L. Hill" of Whitehall, N.Y.; Ottawa Transportation Co., - Then Hull, Quebec now Gatineau, Quebec "Blue Barges" (6);
- Niagara, Ontario Niagara Railway Suspension BridgeSuspension bridgeA suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders. Outside Tibet and Bhutan, where the first examples of this type of bridge were built in the 15th century, this type of bridge dates from the early 19th century...
; - Mutton Harbour/ Her Majesty's Canadian ShipHer Majesty's Canadian ShipThe designation Her Majesty's Canadian Ship , is applied as a prefix to any Canadian Forces warship. In the reign of a king, the designation changes to His Majesty's Canadian Ship; the French version of the title remains unchanged in this instance...
Acadia elevation; - Castlegar Ferry Landing and West Robeson Canadian Pacific RailwayCanadian Pacific RailwayThe Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
Steamer; - Cliff Face Construction (Caribou Road);
- A Mississippi and Ohio River Steamer,
- Pittsburg (Sailor smoking cigar); and others.
External links
- George Adrian Cuthbertson fonds at National Archives Canada
- Cuthbertson's works donated to a museum in Kingston.