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 Budding
Artists:
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The Art Gallery began working with youngsters in the summer
of 1918, when pictures suited to children were exhibited in The Grange, accompanied by
story hours. Boys and girls also came occasionally from Board of Education playgrounds and
University Settlement in the early and mid-1920s. Work with children was pursued more vigorously by Arthur Lismer, member of the Group of Seven and director of the Gallery's educational programs from 1926. When he left for New York in 1938, Lismer had played a vital role in the development of child art in Canada, revolutionizing art education in Ontario and across the country, and raising the Gallery's profile to an international level. For the 1926-27 season, Lismer held a "Saturday Morning Class" for the children of members. He also brought the Cizek Exhibition of Art by Viennese Children to Toronto and organized groups of young visitors from the schools, University Settlement, and the West End Creche. New programs were launched in 1930. The Saturday Morning Classes, offering voluntary education in art appreciation and practical instruction in the arts and crafts, were now open to any child recommended by his or her school. Enrolment rose from 300 to over 900 in 1934. A daily program during the summer drew children from the City playgrounds, three settlement houses, and the Saturday Morning Classes. By 1934, total attendance had more than doubled to 4,798. Lismer's last major project in Toronto was the Children's Art Centre (1933). Established in a Gallery house through a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Centre promoted experiments in free expression. Children - some only two years old - worked in groups, drawing, painting, designing, modelling in clay, and making puppets and plays. The Centre was at maximum capacity by the end of 1934. It hosted up to 1,500 visitors a month for a total attendance of 11,134. Index 
Arthur Lismer and a sketching group, Children's Art Centre 
Saturday Morning Class copying pictures, Art Gallery of Toronto 
Saturday Morning Class in the Print Room, Art Gallery of Toronto 
Illustrating a story, Children's Art Centre 
Everyday Children: A Book of Poems, with Original Illustrations by the Children of the Saturday Classes, Art Gallery of Toronto 
Puppet-making group, Children's Art Centre |
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©2001. City of Toronto |
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