Lawren P. Harris
By descent to Susan E. Harris (daughter), 1978
Masters Gallery, Calgary
Private Collection, Calgary
The ink drawings of Lawren Harris are rare and engaging works that combine the monochrome and line-based approach of his on-site pencil sketches with the careful consideration and contemplation of his oil studies and canvases. For Harris, they were an additional way for him to explore stripping away the unnecessary superficial details of the world to capture the underlying essence of the landscape.
Often based on existing paintings, Harris created works in ink for multiple purposes. In the 1925 Group of Seven show he exhibited a group of ink drawings alongside his paintings, as well as contributed four designs to a collection of prints sold in an edition of 100, "Canadian Drawings by Members of the Group of Seven: A Portfolio of Lithographs". During the 1920s, Lawren Harris was on the publishing committee of Canadian Forum, a 'Monthly Journal of Literature and Public Affairs' which published on a range of topics and reproduced one piece of art in its pages each month. Harris regularly contributed drawings several times per year, and though no known reproduction of this work was published, it is possible that he was considering submitting it.
Harris based this quiet and peaceful drawing on an oil sketch from an early trip to Lake Superior’s north shore, "Near Lake Superior", circa 1922-23 (Private Collection). Likely featuring one of the small inland lakes found on the Coldwell peninsula, the sketch showcases a late fall scene, where ice has formed around the shallows, and the colour of autumn has long fallen away from the trees. In this drawing, the oil sketch’s rapid and lively brushstrokes are translated into a rhythmic depiction of rolling hills, covered with varying textures representing the receding, forested slopes. The removal of the colour from the image gives a new opportunity for the expansive topography of the scene to take centre stage, and the solemnity of the scene is heightened by the clarity that the reductions bring, emphasizing the stillness of the water and the serene reflection of the far shore. As with so many of the artist’s inspiring works, it transports the audience to a meditative moment, offering a connection to the landscape, and to the larger spirit that encompasses such grand places across Canada.
We extend our thanks to Alec Blair, Director/Lead Researcher of the Lawren S. Harris Inventory Project, for contributing the preceding essay.
