signed lower right; signed, titled & dated verso
Provenance: Roberts Gallery, Toronto ON
Toronto born Casson began his art studies at Hamilton Technical School, and apprenticed as a lithographer and engraver at a young age. When his family moved back to Toronto, he attended night classes at Central Technical School, while working as a freelance designer, following up these studies with private lessons at the Ontario College of Art. The first public exhibition of the young artist’s work was at the Canadian National Exhibition, in 1917. In 1919, he accepted a position as Franklin Carmichael’s assistant (at Rous & Mann, later following him to Sampson Matthews). It was this fateful connection with his greatest influencer, sketching partner, eventual long-time friend (and founding member of the Group of Seven) that laid the foundation for Casson’s place in Canadian art history.
Casson, the youngest member of the Group of Seven, joined the Group in 1926, though the scope of his career and influence far outlasted the Group and other members. It was always important for Casson that his work stand out and that he defined his own place, outside of the Group He was not only influential as an artist and designer, but as a teacher and supporter of the arts, and through his active role with numerous public institutions and art associations. Casson was an accomplished oil painter, watercolourist and printmaker, mastering various media, in a way few artists have. His numerous roles meant that he did not paint full time until his retirement in 1957, and he sketched and painted well into his later years. Casson left behind an impressive body of work that spans almost seventy years.
