Bringing Toronto’s artistic past back to life
Clara Harris’s paintings of southern Ontario landscapes to be revealed this weekend
While cleaning out her father’s house about eight years ago, Verna McLean stumbled upon boxes filled with paintings by a little-known Canadian artist named Clara Harris. Her works depict vibrant landscapes from across Ontario and Toronto’s inner suburbs, at a time when they were far more rural.
Originally, McLean considered selling the paintings. But as she looked into the artist’s story more, she discovered Harris, who was born in 1887 and died in 1975, had an impressive background. Her work was shown alongside some of Canada’s most famous artists in large exhibitions including members of the Group of Seven and Emily Carr. She also exhibited in a group show at the Art Institute of Chicago. Yet today she is virtually unknown.
Two upcoming exhibits aim to put her back on the radar. Paintings by Harris owned by McLean and a number of other collectors will be shown on Saturday and Sunday as part of Doors Open, the popular annual event inviting the public into 150 of the city’s most intriguing buildings.
“That’s always been my goal, to have an exhibit in real time so people could see the work,” McLean said. “It has value so I’d like for people to see it. I think it belongs to Canada. It tells a whole story about Toronto.”
The two-part project will be presented at Lambton House and Montgomery’s Inn.
In Captured on Canvas, some personal items from Harris’s life will be shown at Lambton House, including her sketchbook and her husband’s diary, along with her paintings depicting landscapes from across southern Ontario, with many focusing on York and Etobicoke. In Captured on Camera at Montgomery’s Inn, Harris’s work will be shown alongside contemporary photographs of the same locations she painted, taken by students from the Etobicoke School of the Arts, Krystyna Poremba and Georgia Mackay.
“You could argue this isn’t the most fabulous art on the continent. They aren’t Picassos, but it’s an archival record,” McLean said. “It’s a Toronto you can only see through her eyes. It doesn’t exist anywhere else.”
Harris’s work provides viewers with a snapshot of what Toronto used to look like, according to Alexandra Kim, the project’s curator. The exhibits are meant to “encourage conversation and discussion about how urban landscapes are developing, and change the way we’d like to see it develop,” she said.
“We really hope that this is something that catches people’s imaginations and where they feel a real sense of place,” Kim said. “They can see just how striking the change in the landscape has been.”
She also hopes it will shine some light on Harris’s work and life. Despite studying art at a number of institutions including the Ontario College of Art, Port Hope Summer Art School and the Art Institute of Chicago, and exhibiting alongside the Group of Seven, Emily Carr, Mary Wrinch and David Milne, Harris is relatively unknown.
“History often does this filtering process and that can be very imbalanced,” Kim said. “Some people, for whatever reason, receive more publicity. They’re more well known in their own day but fall out of fashion.”
“It’s a Toronto you can only see through her eyes. It doesn’t exist anywhere else.” VERNA MCLEAN OWNER OF CLARA HARRIS PAINTINGS
Kim said Harris’s chances of being remembered were not helped by the fact she was a female artist.
“It’s fair to say, as a woman artist, the chances of being well remembered are that much smaller,” Kim said. “I think as a woman artist the odds were stacked a little bit against Clara. In a way, this is a wonderful opportunity to see if we can change that situation.” Captured on Canvas and Captured on Camera will be open Saturday and Sunday at Lambton House (4066 Old Dundas St.) and Montgomery’s Inn (4709 Dundas St. W.), respectively, from 10 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.