George Adrian Cuthbertson (1898–1969) was a Canadian marine and industrial artist, researcher, and author. He was born in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Early life and training

Cuthbertson grew up both in Toronto and Montreal. He studied at the Toronto Model School, the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

, and the Westmount Academy in

Montreal, Quebec Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. He studied with John D. Kelly in Toronto and with

William Brymner William Brymner, (December 14, 1855 – June 18, 1925) was a Canadian figure and landscape painter and educator. In addition to playing a key role in the development of Impressionism in Canada, Brymner taught numerous artists who became leadi ...

at the Art Association of Montreal, Quebec. At 13, he worked in the summer on a steamer as an able bodied seaman in Montreal.

Military service

He entered the

Royal Military College of Canada The Royal Military College of Canada (), abbreviated in English as RMC and in French as CMR, is a Military academy#Canada, military academy and, since 1959, a List of universities in Canada#Ontario, degree-granting university of the Canadian ...

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the northeastern end of Lake Ontario. It is at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River, the south end of the Rideau Canal. Kingston is near the Thousand Islands, ...

in 1914, but left after one year. At age 17, he joined the Dover Patrol of the British Navy. At the time, he was the Navy's youngest commissioned officer. He served from 1915 to 1918, on trawlers, mine sweepers, and mine layers. Upon leaving the service, he operated a woollen mill at Thurso, Quebec, where he lived for the remainder of his life. He died there in 1969.

Professional career

Along with Paul Caron, Cuthbertson illustrated Blodwen Davies' book about the

Saguenay River __NOTOC__ The Saguenay River (, ) is a major river of Quebec, Canada. It drains Lac Saint-Jean in the Laurentian Highlands, leaving at Alma and running east; the city of Saguenay is located on the river. It drains into the Saint Lawrence River. ...

, ''Saguenay'', (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, Ltd., 1930). Cuthbertson also authored and illustrated ''Freshwater, a history of the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

,'' published by MacMillan, in 1931. He became a prominent marine painter, exhibiting in major centres in Canada and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. His works are found in the collection of the

National Archives of Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; ) is the federal institution tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is the 16th largest library in the world. Th ...

, the

Canada Steamship Lines Canada Steamship Lines (CSL) is a shipping company with headquarters in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The business has been operating for well over a century and a half. Beginnings CSL had humble beginnings in Canada East in 1845, operating river ...

Maritime Collection and various North American marine museums. The

exhibited his fully worked watercolours and maps with accompanying catalogues, in 1928 and 1942. In 1942, the exhibition travelled to

London, Ontario London is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River (Ontario), Thames River and N ...

and

Fort William, Ontario Fort William was a city in Ontario, Canada, located on the Kaministiquia River, at its entrance to Lake Superior. Incorporated as a town in 1892 and as a city in 1907, it was amalgamated with Port Arthur and the townships of Neebing and McIntyre ...

and to the Mariners Museum in

Newport News, Virginia Newport News () is an Independent city (United States), independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the List of c ...

. Cuthbertson also worked as a staff artist at th
Canadian Mining Journal
in which are found many of his sketches and illustrations of industrial mining-related scenes. A Cuthbertson sketch of prospector Thomas Baycroft appeared most recently in the May 2022 edition of the CMJ. In addition, Cuthbertson was also commissioned by the International Nickel Company (INCO, now Vale Canada Ltd) to illustrate scenes of the company's mines and plants in the Sudbury, Ontario region. One of his color illustrations "The Great Frood Mine" appears on the cover of one of the editions of the 1950s INCO publication " The Romance of Nickel".

Works

Many of his works describe the history of

shipping Freight transport, also referred to as freight forwarding, is the physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea but in American English, it has been ...

on the

. The Marine Museum of the Great Lakes in

features several of his works: * drawings as a child in

* wartime watercolours, *

charcoal Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, ca ...

study sketches done after the war. Maritime Subjects include: *

Esquimalt, British Columbia The Township of Esquimalt () is a municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. It is bordered to the east by the provincial capital, Victoria, British Columbia, Victoria, to the south by the Strait of Jua ...

Barquentine ''Puako'', ''Fremona'' & ''Tory Head''; Dugout

Canoe A canoe is a lightweight, narrow watercraft, water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using paddles. In British English, the term ' ...

, "

Her Majesty's Ship His (or Her) Majesty's Ship, abbreviated HMS and H.M.S., is the ship prefix used for ships of the navy in some monarchies. Derivative terms such as HMAS and equivalents in other languages such as SMS are used. Commonwealth Realms United Kingdo ...

(HMS) ''Rainbow'' and (HMS) ''Algeria''" *

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

Harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be Mooring, moored. The t ...

; "M.L. in Heavy Weather"; ''Egeria Cutter''; ''Sir Henry Harness''; *

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

''Kingfisher''; "Triumph at Halifax"; "Canadian

Submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...

s Arriving at Halifax"; * Warwick and Knapton Canal; *

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

Ottawa River The Ottawa River (, ) is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It is named after the Algonquin word "to trade", as it was the major trade route of Eastern Canada at the time. For most of its length, it defines the border betw ...

Lake Champlain Lake Champlain ( ; , ) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canadian province of Quebec. The cities of Burlington, Ve ...

(Barge Series); Barge ''Hon. L. Hill'' of Whitehall, N.Y.; Ottawa Transportation Co., * Then Hull, Quebec now

Gatineau, Quebec Gatineau ( ; ) is a city in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is located on the northern bank of the Ottawa River, directly across from Ottawa, Ontario. Gatineau is the largest city in the Outaouais administrative region of Quebec and is also par ...

"Blue Barges" (6); * Niagara Railway Suspension Bridge; * Mutton Harbour/

Her Majesty's Canadian Ship The designation His Majesty's Canadian Ship (HMCS; CSM, is applied as a prefix to surface ships in the Royal Canadian Navy and Canadian Joint Operations Command. The similar designation of His Majesty's Canadian Submarine is applied to submarin ...

''Acadia'' elevation; * Castlegar Ferry Landing and West Robeson

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

Steamer; * Cliff Face Construction (Caribou Road); * A Mississippi and Ohio River Steamer, * Pittsburg (Sailor smoking cigar); and others. Some of Cuthbertson's graphite art commissioned by the International Nickel Company appears in the November 1937 issue of the Canadian Mining Journal, including: * The Converter Aisle at Copper Cliff, * Battery of Marcy Rod Mills, Copper Cliff, * Wire Bar Casting at Ontario Refining Co. Ltd., * A Rough Sketch of the Frood Mine Hoist, * Interplant Surface Railway Equipment, * Thomas Baycroft - Old Time Prospector for Canadian Copper Co. - Discovers Traces of Nickel Ore, and * The Frood Mine. Some of Cuthbertson's color illustrations commissioned by the International Nickel Company appear in the May 1946 issue of the Canadian Mining Journal, including: * The Great Frood Mine, * The Frood Open Pit, * Converter Aisle, * Hot Metal Car, and * Rod Mill Aisle.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cuthbertson, George Adrian 1898 births 1969 deaths 20th-century Canadian male artists 20th-century Canadian painters Canada Steamship Lines people Canadian male painters Canadian marine artists Canadian modern painters People from Old Toronto Royal Military College of Canada alumni University of Toronto alumni