Sold for: $6,875

PROVENANCE
Mr. Bruce C. Matson, Toronto
A gift from the widow of Mr. Bruce C. Matson to a Private Collection, Ontario, 1994
By descent to the present Private Estate, Ontario

LITERATURE
The Arts and Letters Club of Toronto, Some interesting Club history, https://www.artsandlettersclub.ca/index.cfm?pagepath=About_Us/History&id=13557, accessed April 7, 2020

"The Viking ship with sails full spread before the rising sun was to remind members of the open sea and the great adventure."

-- C.W. Jefferys on the Arts & Letters Club logo design by J.E.H. MacDonald

Founded in 1908, Toronto’s fabled Arts & Letters Club began as a meeting place of those who sought to celebrate and fortify arts and literature of all stripes in English Canada. In 1909, a crest for the club was designed by J.E.H MacDonald, and it is used to this day. This work by the artist, dated 1914 on the frame, contains hints of white gouache highlights that contrast the fine ink line work, suggesting it may have been reproduced as an illustration in a Club publication.

The significance of the Arts & Letters Club to the development of Canadian painting is hard to over-state. MacDonald’s 1911 exhibition of small works at the Club led to his introduction to Lawren Harris. This meeting precipitated others, and the Group of Seven and their peers, many of whom were fellow Club members, went on to create a distinctly Canadian style of artistic expression.

All prices are in Canadian Dollars

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