The youngest original member of the Seven, Frank Carmichael was born in Orillia, Ontario, where he first worked in his father's carriage shop. His interest in art took him to Toronto in 1911, where he studied at the Central Technical School and the Ontario College of Art. He was employed at the commercial art firms of Grip Ltd. and Rous and Mann, where his colleagues included MacDonald, Tom Thomson, Frank Johnston, Arthur Lismer and FH Varley. The war interrupted his studies at the Academie des Beaux Arts in Antwerp, Belgium, after only a year. Returning to Toronto, he found space in the new Studio Building on Severn Street, sharing a work room with Tom Thomson and mixing with the other artists there. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay While working with the men who would form the Group of Seven, Carmichael was included in weekend sketch trips and showed great progress. However, with his marriage in 1915, responsibilities to family and work prevented Carmichael from joining the drawing trips to Algonquin Park and Algoma undertaken by others in the final years of the decade. It was only during the great excursions of 1923-24 that Carmichael again traveled north. Meanwhile his paintings came from weekend drawing trips to areas not far from Toronto or his family's home in Orillia. October Gold of 1922 is based on a sketch made in Lansing in North York near Toronto, but reveals the typical interests and interpretation of The Group of Seven: it may represent a northern wilderness scene, as there is no hint of nearby urbanization and the autumn colors contrast with the hills. For Franklin Carmichael, the La Cloche region north of Georgian Bay has proven to be an ongoing source of inspiration. The artist first visited the area in 1926 and built a summer cottage there in 1936. La Cloche is the area depicted in the artist's mature works, such as Light and Shadow – heavily designed and delineated panoramas of rolling hills, lakes and expansive skies.Carmichael left his job as a commercial artist in 1932 to teach at the Ontario College of Art and eventually became head of the commercial and graphic art department. His reputation as a teacher was enhanced by his work as an acclaimed designer and illustrator. He was also a founding member of the Canadian Society of Painters in Watercolors, of which he was president from 1932 to 1934. Carmichael was always on the fringes of the Group, probably because of the age difference and perhaps because he worked full time as a commercial artist. Most members of the Group seemed to have the attitude that teaching art was an honorable calling, but they attached a stigma to working in the commercial field. This seems rather ironic considering that almost all members started in this area. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay He was a brilliant craftsman who prided himself on technique, but he was also a rhythmic and musical painter. His early works almost resemble tapestries with their flat juxtapositions of colours. As he developed as an artist, he began to emphasize deep, three-dimensional space. Although Carmichael's contributions as a commercial artist, graphic designer, and illustrator are considerable, perhaps Carmichael's greatest contribution to the Group was to revive the neglected art of watercolor painting..