Description
This 2015 $20 fine silver coin pays tribute to one of the most recognized and influential artists that ever lived in Canada. Tom Thompson’s paintings transformed how Canada’s northern landscape was perceived at home and abroad, and created a new style of art that was continued after his tragic death by the members of the Group of Seven. The coin is struck with a near flawless proof finish with selective gold plating, and weighs just over one full ounce of .9999 fine silver. As a pure silver coin struck by the Royal Canadian Mint, this item is GST/HST exempt.
The Painting: Spring Ice (1916):
Recreating every brushstroke from the original canvases, with beautiful detailing and raised elements that recapture the depth and subtleties of Thomson’s work: the crispness of a spring day in the wilderness, with leafless trees set against the open water that still carries some icy evidence of winter on its surface.
The Artist:
Tom Thompson (1877-1917), was one of Canada’s most influential artists of the early twentieth century. As the forerunner of the Group of Seven, he is best known as an interpreter of the Canadian Wilderness. In 1911 Thomson made his first sketching trip by canoe into the Mississauga Forest Reserve with one of his fellow artists. The following year he went on a longer trip into Algonquin Park, a provincial forest with which his name has been linked ever since.
