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(1882
- 1974) “A.Y.” as he was fondly known, was born in
Montreal on October 3, 1882. Like other members of the Group
of Seven, he was trained as a commercial artist and for many
years made his living by that means. He apprenticed for a
Montreal lithographer at the age of 12, and though he later
spent two and a half years in France studying painting, he
was soon back in Canada paying his rent by working for a
commercial art firm.
In 1920, with Lawren Harris, Arthur Lismer, Franklin
Carmichael, Frederick Varley, J.E.H. MacDonald and Frank
Johnston, he formed the most famous exhibitors’ group in
the history of Canadian painting: the Group of Seven. In the
following years, he painted Northern Ontario, the Arctic,
the Rocky Mountains, and the Prairies, as well as his
beloved Quebec, where his countless sketching expeditions
earned him the nickname Père Raquette because he could be
seen wearing snowshoes.
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