Curtis Williamson (January2, 1867 April18, 1944) known for his portraits and figure painting; also genre and landscape. He was nicknamed "the Canadian Rembrandt" because of his dark, tonal style. Williamson showed his work at the

Canadian Art Club The Canadian Art Club was an artists' group established in Toronto in 1907 to advance the standards of Canadian art exhibitions and to exhibit the work of distinguished Canadian artists, particularly those who had studied abroad or lived there. It ...

's inaugural exhibition in 1907 and like some of the other members, his work had a Hague school or

Barbizon Barbizon () is a commune (town) in the Seine-et-Marne department in north-central France. It is located near the Fontainebleau Forest. Demographics The inhabitants are called ''Barbizonais''. Art history The Barbizon school of painters is na ...

sensibility.

Career

Williamson was born in

Brampton Brampton ( or ) is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Brampton is a city in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a lower-tier municipality within Peel Region. The city has a population of 656,480 as of the 2021 Census, making it the ...

, Ontario. He studied in Toronto, and Paris where he began exhibiting in the Paris Salon in 1891, then in Holland. He brought back a style that was low in tone back with him from Holland when he returned to Toronto in 1892. In 1893, he was elected to the

Ontario Society of Artists The Ontario Society of Artists (OSA) was founded in 1872. It is Canada's oldest continuously operating professional art society. When it was founded at the home of John Arthur Fraser, seven artists were present. Besides Fraser himself, Marmaduke M ...

and exhibited there extensively (1893-1922). He returned to Europe in 1895 and painted in rural Holland, then travelled to France and painted with

James Wilson Morrice James Wilson Morrice (August 10, 1865 – January 23, 1924) was one of the first Canadian landscape painters to be known internationally. He studied at the Académie Julian in Paris, France, where he lived for most of his career. James Morrice S ...

at Fontainebeau. He also painted at Barbizon. In 1904, he returned to Toronto won a silver medal for his painting ''Klaasje'' (1902) at the Canadian exhibition at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1906, he travelled to Newfoundland and painted fishing villages. In 1907, with Edmund Morris, he helped found the

, and served as its secretary (1908-1909) and then, as a member of its executive council (1910-1915). He was elected to the

Royal Canadian Academy The Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (RCA) is a Canadian arts-related organization that was founded in 1880. History 1880 to 1890 The title of Royal Canadian Academy of Arts was received from Queen Victoria on 16 July 1880. The Governor General ...

in 1907 and exhibited there from 1894 to 1930. In 1908, the understated manner he used in his paintings as in ''Fish Sheds, Newfoundland'', was seen as startling. He was a founding member of the

Arts and Letters Club of Toronto The Arts and Letters Club of Toronto (usually just called ''The Arts and Letters Club'') is a private club in Toronto, Ontario, which brings together writers, architects, musicians, painters, graphic artists, actors and others working in or with a ...

with

Lawren Harris Lawren Stewart Harris LL. D. (October 23, 1885 – January 29, 1970) was a Canadian painter, best known as a leading member of the Group of Seven. He played a key role as a catalyst in Canadian art and as a visionary in Canadian landscape art. ...

and in 1913, Harris praised his work, calling it full of “half-subdued fire” in the ''Yearbook of Canadian Art''. In 1914, he established a studio in the Studio Building. Later, his painting style was freer and less subdued. Among his portraits, he painted ''Portrait of Dr J. M. MacCallum ('A Cynic')'' (1917), Sir

Frederick Banting Sir Frederick Grant Banting (November 14, 1891 – February 21, 1941) was a Canadian medical scientist, physician, painter, and Nobel laureate noted as the co-discoverer of insulin and its therapeutic potential. In 1923, Banting and J ...

, (1924), and G. Blair Laing (1936-1937). He died in Toronto at age 77.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williamson, Curtis 1867 births 1944 deaths 19th-century Canadian painters Canadian male painters 20th-century Canadian painters Canadian landscape painters Artists from Ontario Académie Julian alumni Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts 19th-century Canadian male artists 20th-century Canadian male artists