In the early 1920s, Edwin Holgate was a key player in the formation of the Beaver Hall Group in Montreal. Holgate became the eighth member of the Group of Seven in 1931 and remained a member of the Group until it disbanded in 1933. From it arose the Canadian Group of Painters of which he was a founding member. Paul Duval noted that Holgate and Varley were the only members of the Group who drew and painted nudes. Compared to his contemporaries, he had a wide range of subject matter, including landscapes, portraits, still lifes, interiors and war scenes in a variety of media. In “Still Life”, Holgate presents a gloxinia plant viewed from above. It is a traditional still life arrangement, the potted plant surrounded by a generous amount of gathered tablecloth, and behind the plant is a lidded ceramic vase. The unique perspective as well as the jewel tones of the foliage demonstrate how Holgate developed his own unique balance of traditional and modern approaches.
Edwin Headley Holgate - Still Life | Cowley Abbott
