create an art show in Toronto in 1920. That was the show where the critics called the
paintings “art gone mad.”
But this did not deter A. Y.; he was convinced that the Group of Seven was on to
something great. He kept painting, traveling, and exhibiting, and although it took many
years, his modern style started to catch on and his work became increasingly popular.
By the time he died in 1974 at the age of eighty-two, A.Y. Jackson was acknowledged as
a painting genius and a pioneer of modern landscape art. He and the other painters of the
Group of Seven are among the most famous artists in Canadian history, with an entire
museum and art gallery dedicated to their work.
Jackson could have chosen to listen to the critics and given up his bold new ideas, but he
remained confident and followed his dream.
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