Georgian Bay, Manitou Dock

Roberts Gallery, Toronto Private Collection, Ontario

Peter Mellen, “The Group of Seven”, Toronto/Montreal, 1981, pages 134 Dennis Reid, “Canadian Jungle: The Later Work of Arthur Lismer”, 1985, pages 19 and 43

A favourite destination and subject for the artist throughout his career, Arthur and Marjorie Lismer would visit Georgian Bay each summer, usually spending two to three weeks in the region each year. The Lismers frequently stayed at Manitou Dock during their vacations, staying at a lodge in the area as early as 1931. Dennis Reid notes that the Lismers visited Manitou Dock during August in 1949, following travels in eastern Canada. “Georgian Bay, Manitou Dock” features a spectrum of blues and greens, Lismer employing his pure hues to distinguish the dark lavender and mauves of the rocky shoreline from the sliding gradient of emerald-to-turquoise-to-blue towards the high horizon. Stark white impasto accents the middle of the composition, the crashing waves providing wild movement within the untamed landscape.