STUART CLIFFORD SHAW
(1896 – 1969)
Sketches and Studies
Stuart C. Shaw painted very much in the manner of the Group of Seven and the “Port of Hope School”, of which he was a member. Like many other Canadian Artist of his time, he painted on small panels during his “sketching trips”. He used the 81/2” by 101/2 “ size, which gave him sufficient space to work and also was and small enough to permit him to carry them to the bush and lakes. Like any others, Shaw used markings or pencil lines to divide his panels. This assisted the artist with points of reference in the small space, which allowed him to work on the composition, proportion and depth. Sometimes he would use scratching of the board or pencil lines squaring the space into different areas of field. Other prominent artists, such as Robert Harris and Alex Colville also used this method. A.J. Casson used the method of delineating the image with pencil before adding colour. The pencil can still be seen through the thinly applied paint in some of the sketches.
Sketches and studies by the Group of Seven members and other contemporaries can be more valuable than some of their so-called finished works. These sketches and studies are usually painted in front of the subject, they are more spontaneous and reflect skill of the artist.
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