Hot Mush and the Cold North: The Group of Seven
3 June 2005 to 2 October 2005
Curator: Emily Falvey

A province-wide festival of exhibitions, educational activities and related events celebrating the 85th anniversary of the first exhibition of the Group of Seven is being presented by 26 partnering public art galleries across Ontario and the Ontario Association of Art Galleries from March to December 2005. Read more

Lawren Stewart Harris
Mount Thule, Bylot Island, n.d.

Kent Monkman
Prick Island, 2001

At one time famously dubbed the “Hot Mush School,” Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven are today considered national icons. Although their paintings are beloved by many Canadians, some contemporary artists and art historians are critical of the image of Canada they represent. Hot Mush and the Cold North will explore some of the conflicts surrounding the art and mythology of the Group of Seven. It will include significant works by members of the Group from the Firestone Collection of Canadian Art and the Art Gallery of Ontario, as well as responses to their subject matter by contemporary artists Edward Burtynsky, Colwyn Griffith, Lorraine Gilbert, and Kent Monkman.

Events

Vernissage
Thursday 2 June at 5:30 pm

Talk with Dr. Brian Foss (Concordia University, Montreal)
Thursday 16 June at 6 pm

Exhibition walkthrough with Emily Falvey, Curator
Friday 29 July at 12:30 pm

Panel Discussion
Dr. François-Marc Gagnon (Director, The Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Institute for Studies in Canadian Art, Concordia University), Dr. Eva Mackey (Department of Anthropology, McMaster University), and Kent Monkman (Filmmaker and Visual Artist). Moderated by Lorraine Gilbert (Visual Artist/Department of Visual Arts, University of Ottawa)
Saturday 24 September at 2 pm - 4 pm