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HISTORY OF THE CSPWC - HOW IT ALL STARTED
Following the Remembrance
Day ceremony on November 11, 1925, a group of artists met
in the library of the Arts and Letters Club, a popular gathering
place for practitioners in all the arts in Toronto. At that
meeting 12 major Canadian talents, all passionately committed
to the importance of watercolour as a medium, founded the
Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour.
The founding artists were: F.H. Brigden, A.J. Casson, Franklin
Carmichael, C.W. Jefferys, Fred S. Haines, L.A.C. Panton,
R.F. Gagen, Thomas G. Greene, Robert Holmes, Franz Johnston,
Andre Lapine, and E.J. Sampson.
Their aim was to recognize, encourage and nurture excellence
of work in the medium of watercolour.
THE EARLY HEADY YEARS
By 1926 there were 26 members
and an important connection had been made with the Art Gallery
of Toronto (now the Art Gallery of Ontario). The annual exhibitions
became a regular feature of the gallery’s programme.
Much of the work is free and bold….It
is obvious that the younger men are not afraid to experiment
In 1932 the Art Gallery
of Canada (now the National Gallery) began to promote the
exhibitions of the CSPWC and over the years assisted us in
organizing exchange exhibitions in the USA, Great Britain,
Brazil, France and New Zealand.
THE CSPWC REACHES OUT TO NEW
ARTISTS
The annual exhibitions became
truly open rather than
invitational in 1949.
What is especially interesting
about the 22nd Annual Exhibition…at the Art Gallery
is the number of unfamiliar signatures to be found along with
those of such experienced practitioners as Brigden, Comfort,
Schaefer.
THE DIFFICULT YEARS
The links with large, prestigious
galleries continued until the mid 1950’s when new policies
favouring in-house curated exhibitions became the norm. The
33rd annual juried exhibition in 1958 was the last major exhibition
held at the Art Gallery of Toronto.
Connections with major institutions
had helped us to educate the public about watercolour, and
had stimulated artists to produce exceptional work. Now
the CSPWC had to find new venues for its exhibitions. The
annual exhibitions moved out into smaller communities and
galleries across the country from Kamloops to Winnipeg to
St. Johns. This was hard work, but it had the positive effect
of starting the society on the long road to becoming a truly
national organization. 416 926 9795
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nightmares!
…disturbing
perhaps for the conservative taste, but stimulating for
those willing to investigate and enjoy new methods of expression.
WATERCOLOUR ON THE RISE AGAIN
For our 50th anniversary in 1975,
the Art Gallery of Ontario agreed to curate a show of watercolours,
some of which toured to Canada House in England. The annual
juried exhibition was held in London, Ontario, and in the
following year a major
exchange exhibition with Japan took place. In the early
80’s the Society put itself on a more solid administrative
footing by sharing office space with Visual Arts Ontario and
hiring a paid part time secretary. The 60th anniversary in
1985 was a huge celebration highlighted by the Hot Water Colour
show at Toronto’s Harbourfront and the acceptance by
Her Majesty, the Queen of 60 paintings into the
Royal Collection at Windsor Castle.
HUGE LEAPS FORWARD
In the late 80’s the
CSPWC joined with five other societies to manage the John
B. Aird Gallery, at 900 Bay St. in Toronto. This gave the
Society the guarantee of one major exhibition slot each year
and many of the annual open juried exhibitions since then
have been held at this venue. A resurgence of interest in
watercolour painting in the 90’s and our determined
efforts to reach out to artists across the country through
the creation of Regional Directors and the organization of
a series of symposiums,
meant that during an economically difficult period, when many
arts organizations struggled, the CSPWC grew, expanding both
its membership and its activities. In the late 90’s
the Society spent two years actively debating the merits of
transparent watercolour versus water based media, a debate
that has periodically taken place since 1925. This time the
members defined terms and set down guidelines for exhibitions,
which would encourage experimentation while honouring the
transparent tradition.
SEVENTY FIVE YEARS!
There was a lot to celebrate
on our 75th anniversary in 2000 and we did it with an unprecedented
number of exhibitions. In 2002 a major review of the by-laws
initiated changes in the method of electing members. Reflecting
the growing number of members across the country, new
members are now elected by a national membership committee
from portfolios of digital images.
AND
STILL GROWING
The CSPWC now has over 265
elected members and a similar number of associates. Our office
is at Wallace Studios, a building which houses three film
production studios and various other arts related organizations.
From 2001-03 we operated the CSPWC Gallery @Wallace
Studios showcasing the work of members and associates.
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