A Vital Force: The Canadian Group of Painters

About this exhibition

The Canadian Group of Painters, founded in 1933, was the first group to aspire to cross-country representation of modernist artists. Though it lasted into the 1960s, it was most influential in the first two decades of its existence. From 1933 to 1953, CGP exhibitions travelled across Canada and into the United States, stirring excitement, reflection and debate on the state of Canadian art and society. Its engagement with modern life during the turbulent times of the Depression, World War II and postwar reconstruction made it a vital force. Not only did women artists gain a powerful voice through the CGP, many young artists were given a platform to showcase new works. A Vital Force features forty-eight works by forty-eight key members. All of these works were presented in CGP exhibitions.

This exhibition is organized and circulated by the Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Queen’s University, Kingston, in partnership with The Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa, and Queen’s University Archives, Kingston, with the generous support of the Museums Assistance Program at Canadian Heritage and other public and private funders.

Publication