A throwback art expedition

Art Untamed things Sept. 9 to 19, Arta Gallery

In 1917, the painter Tom Thomson died mysteriously on Canoe Lake. A century later, 11 Canadian artists have retraced his steps, travelling through Thomson’s beloved Algonquin Park and painting along the way. This month, they show off what they created in an exhibition called Untamed Things. We asked artist Lonny Doherty to tell us about the expedition.

You must be a big tom thomson fan, right?

I’ve always felt a kinship with him. He seemed to have a similar personality to me: quiet and reserved—not a loner, but a fan of alone time. He was a graphic designer turned painter; I’m an interior designer turned painter. I feel like he could have been a brother 100 years ago.

had you taken artistic inspiration from algonquin Park before this trip?

No—almost out of fear. I didn’t want to put myself up against Thomson and fail. I’ve crawled around the Don Valley trails and High Park, but I realized there’s only so much you can glean from that sort of experience. So I decided I’d step out on the ledge, jump and hope for the best. It just happened to be Canada 150 and the 100th anniversary of Thomson’s death.

how long was the trip?

We spent four days at Canisbay Lake in the fall and, recently, a few more days in Kiosk, in the northwestern corner of the park. We had bug nets over our heads, hockey tape around our cuffs, rain gear on—just toughing it out. By the end of it, it was like we’d been to battle together.

how did the group setting differ from your usual process?

Painting in a studio is very solitary. It can be traumatic if you’re inside your head the whole time. Being out there with the guys is encouraging. We’d walk around, look at each other’s work and say, “Hey, this is great,” and, “Why don’t you try this?” If I was feeling lazy in the morning, there would be 10 other people already out painting, and I’d be like, “Oh no….”

What did you learn from immersing yourself in nature that long?

Every five minutes, things completely change. You bend down to paint a sunny section of bush, and when you look up again, it’s covered in cloud shadows. Day to day, the lake could be wavy or calm; the sky could be clear or rainy. Once, Thomson painted the same spot for 30 days in a row just to document how the weather changed.