Jennifer Pereira Art

In celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Group of Seven’s first exhibition, the Temiskaming Art Gallery invited artists of Northern Ontario (as defined by the NOAA) and NorthWestern Quebec to submit their own interpretations of Canadian identity. The Group of Seven was highly successful in presenting a unified image of Canadian identity rooted in the motif of the untamed North. TAG acknowledges that this identity was rooted within a singular viewpoint, and we feel that now it is time to diversify our conception of what it means to be Canadian, especially in the north.

When confronted with the task of reflecting my Canadian identity with a current and authentic viewpoint I was somewhat conflicted as my visual concepts and reference photos (taken by my wife) were all reminiscent of the singular viewpoint disseminated by the group of seven.

After working on a project looking into Group of Seven works done in cobalt, where I currently reside, and reflecting on my own Canadian identity, the recurring interpretation that came to mind was to pay homage to the ‘untamed north’ as we have been so accustomed to viewing but with a simple twist which was to add my presence. In this work I have recreated in oil paint a photo of my dogs as they pose for my wife during a family snowshoe to Cobalt Mountain. 

Group of Seven in Temiskaming: Reflections after 100 years – YouTube

group of seven trifold (temiskamingartgallery.ca)