(1873, Durham, England – 1932, Toronto, Ontario)
MacDonald first exhibited his vivid oil sketches of Toronto’s High Park at the Arts and Letters Club of Toronto in November 1911, attracting the attention of Lawren Harris; they began exhibiting together shortly thereafter. Influenced by the Romantics, the Barbizon school, and the Arts and Crafts movement, he left the city for Thornhill before the Group’s first exhibition to be closer to nature. In the 1920’s, MacDonald traveled with other members through the Algoma region; his work from this period reveals an intense mystical reaction to the land. His paintings became broader in design, with bold, livelier rhythms.
J.E.H. MacDonald, Lake O'Hara, Rockies, 1926. Oil on wood-pulp board, 21.5 x 26.6 cm. The Thomson Collection at the Art Gallery of Ontario. Photo © AGO.
