Group of Seven Guitar Project

Strange but interesting exhibition at Canada House matching seven guitar makers to artists from the Canadian Group of Seven Artists and commissioning a work from each.

The Group of Seven Artists came together in the early 20th century in a shared belief that direct contact with nature could create a distinctive Canadian art form. From the photographs in the exhibition their works looks beautiful landscapes and I’d love to see more of it.

I’ve never seen guitars used as a basis for art before and these were beautiful objects. Each guitar maker chose an artist and produced a piece based on their work. The guitar makers, or luthiers, have also created a collective legacy which is shaping the guitar making industry.

I loved the touch that some of the luthiers like Sergei de Jonge, had used either types of wood which surrounded the area where the artists had worked or wood from trees in their paintings. Jean Larrivee’s piece looked quite plain but when you look carefully there is a landscape made of wood inlay inside. Linda Manzer and David Wren changed the shape of the guitars to mirror their artists work.

Closes on 10 November 2018