CNHS - The Studio Building - Toronto, Ontario
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JSDAFM
N 43° 40.397 W 079° 23.170
17T E 630096 N 4836851
Earliest purpose-built artist studio in Canada representing the visions of a young generation of Canadian artists, 1914
Waymark Code: WMAWAB
Location: Ontario, Canada
Date Posted: 03/02/2011
Views: 10
The Studio Building is a modernist three-storey brick building with an industrial look which was constructed in 1914 as artists’ studios. Located at 25 Severn Street in downtown Toronto at the edge of the Rosedale ravine, its studio spaces have been used by many Canadian artists, among them members of the Group of Seven. The official recognition refers to the building on its lot.
The Studio Building was designated a national historic site of Canada in 2004 because:
- it is the earliest purpose-built artist studio in Canada representing the visions of a young generation of Canadian artists who would have a professional venue and gathering place to develop a distinctly Canadian art;
- it is directly associated with the Group of Seven and painter Tom Thomson;
- it is an example of early 20th century modern architecture in Canada that rejected ornamentation and drew on industrial design; and
- it is an important studio for many notable Canadian artists since 1913.
The Studio Building was designed by architect Eden Smith, FRAIC, in 1913 and built by R. Robertson and Sons in 1914 as an artists’ studio for painter Lawren Harris and Canadian art patron Dr. James MacCallum who made it available to artists needing space to work and live. It contains six purpose-built studio spaces that have provided excellent working accommodations for Canadian artists for almost a century. At one time, Tom Thomson, Arthur Lismer and Thoreau MacDonald lived and worked in a shack in the yard (now demolished).
The heritage value of The Studio Building National Historic Site of Canada resides in its associations with important Canadian artists including the Group of Seven, and its physical illustration of an early Canadian purpose-built artists’ studio in the modernist idiom.
Source: Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, Minutes, June 2004.
Classification: National Historic Site
Province or Territory: Ontario
Location - City name/Town name: Toronto
Link to Parks Canada entry (must be on www.pc.gc.ca): [Web Link]
Link to HistoricPlaces.ca: [Web Link]
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