Submitted by the staff of the Orillia Museum of Art and History (OMAH)
Franklin Carmichael (May 4, 1890-Oct. 24, 1945) was an illustrator, painter and teacher born in Orillia on this day, 134 years ago.
He is most well known due to his affiliation with the Group of Seven, a group of landscape painters from Canada who worked from 1920 to 1933, of which he was the youngest founding member.
In 1910, at the age of 20, Carmichael moved from Orillia to Toronto to attend school at the Ontario College of Art (today the Ontario College of Art and Design University). A year later, in 1911, a job at the illustrious Grip Ltd., a Toronto design firm, found him in contact with future members of the Group of Seven, and led to early landscape sketching trips north of Toronto.
Carmichael moved briefly to Brussels, Belgium, to study art at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts, but his time there was cut short due to the outbreak of the First World War. He returned to Toronto and continued to explore his artistic practice by going on painting trips and sharing a studio space with future members of the Group of Seven. In 1919, these artists decided to form a group devoted to landscape painting and began to call themselves the Group of Seven.
Between 1920 and 1933, Carmichael painted with the group, starting with the medium of oil paint. Then, in 1925, during a trip to the north shore of Lake Superior, he shifted focus toward working in watercolour, a medium he preferred to use until the group disbanded. That same year, he helped found the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour, a group that still operates today, and is exhibiting with OMAH in 2025.
The works of Carmichael are held in major collections, including the National Gallery of Canada, the Art Gallery of Ontario and the McMichael Canadian Art Collection. OMAH is pleased to have in its collection artifacts including his easel and painting bag, hand-made Christmas cards, and four of his original artworks, including Old Barns, Miner’s Bay. This painting was purchased in 2020 with funds donated by sponsors throughout our generous community.
Next week, we will feature another object from the OMAH collection that showcases our local history.
