The Unseen Silkscreens: Canada's National Identity

May 11 2011 to May 31 2011

Celebrate Canada's visual identity. The Pegasus Gallery of Canadian Art is pleased to be able to offer collectors an opportunity to once again be a part of our nation’s largest publicly funded art project. In conjunction with the National Gallery of Canada, the prominent graphic firm of Sampson-Matthews produced a wealth of technically masterful silkscreens under the supervision of Alfred Joseph Casson. Between 1942 and 1963, a total of 89 works of art by a virtual who`s who of Canadian artists were translated into oil pigment silkscreens.

Such well known artists as AY Jackson, Lawren Harris, Tom Thomson and JEH MacDonald, from the group of seven, were represented along with woman artists including Yvonne McKague Housser, Rody Kenny Courtice and Emily Carr as well as a host of other well regarded and loved artists. One of the most valuable morale boosters of the war, these silkscreens–depicting scenes from coast to coast–were sent to army barracks and were later available to schools, hospitals and libraries. Pegasus Gallery was fortunate enough to acquire a large group of prints, and is offering over 55 different images. They are visually rich, affordable documents of our Nation`s Heritage.