The Valley of the Don, 1925

Roberts Gallery, Toronto The Art Emporium, Vancouver Private Collection, Calgary

F.H. Varley: A Centennial Exhibition, The Edmonton Art Gallery, October 16 - December 6, 1981, no. 71 (touring exhibition)

Christopher Varley, F.H. Varley, A Centennial Exhibition, The Edmonton Art Gallery, 1981, pages 72, 74 and 190

“The Valley of the Don” is a masterful landscape painting from Frederick Varley's time spent in Toronto during the first half of 1920s. During this period, Varley's reputation was established nationally as he exhibited with fellow members of the Group of Seven. In the fall of 1925 the artist received a full time teaching position at the Ontario College of Art and “further supplemented his income in 1925-26 by taking on private students in his home on Yonge Street.” Varley was praised by both his OCA and private students as “a valuable and inspiring teacher.” The artist would remain in the city until the summer of 1926 when he relocated to Vancouver to teach at the newly established Vancouver School of Decorative and Applied Arts. Varley's depiction of a picturesque locale in the heart of Toronto exemplifies his rich handling of the medium. The lush foliage of the Don Valley is captured in early autumn beneath darkening mauve-tinged clouds. Varley's stylized landscape underscores his skill in depicting light and shadow, translating the very essence of his subject. “The Valley of the Don” was exhibited in “F.H. Varley, A Centennial Exhibition”, an exhibition first held at The Edmonton Art Gallery in 1981 which travelled to the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, the National Gallery of Canada, The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and the Art Gallery of Ontario.