ARTHUR LISMER (1885-1969)

Born in Sheffield, England, Arthur Lismer showed an early interest in art, taking classes at the Sheffield School of Art and then later at the Academie Royale in Antwerp. Immigrating to Canada in 1911 and eventually settling in Toronto, Lismer began work at Grip Ltd - a design firm where many of the Group of Seven would first meet one another. Relocating to the east coast, Lismer would serve as the President of the Victorian School of Art and Design (now NSCAD). During World War I, Lismer was inspired by the naval activity in Halifax and, and was eventually commissioned as an official war artist. The peer group formed at Grip Ltd eventually evolved into the Group of Seven, with the members helping to define a national painting aesthetic for Canada. Throughout his career as an artist, Lismer was also an educator, teaching at institutions including OCAD University, the AGO and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. In 1962 he received the Canada Council Medal for his contribution to the arts and in 1967 he was made a Companion of the Order of Canada. Arthur Lismer died in 1969 in Montreal and is buried on the grounds of the McMichael Art Collection alongside other members of the Group of Seven.

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