loading 
Catalogue entry
Related
loading
1916.159
Autumn Birches
Fall 1916
Oil on wood panel
8 1/2 x 10 1/2 in. (21.6 x 26.7 cm)
Inscription recto: l.l., estate stamp
Provenance
Estate of the artist
Elizabeth Thomson Harkness, Annan and Owen Sound
Norah de Pencier, Owen Sound
McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg (1966.2.3). Gift of Norah (Mrs. H.P) de Pencier, 1966
Exhibition History
1976 McMichael
McMichael Canadian Collection, Kelvingrove Art Gallery, Glasgow, United Kingdom, Group of Seven: Canadian Landscape Painters, August 25–September 18, 1976, no. 5. Traveled to: Talbot Rice Centre, Edinburgh, United Kingdom, September 29–October 20, 1976; Aberdeen Art Gallery, Aberdeen, United Kingdom, November 27–December 18, 1976; Canada House Gallery, London, January 12–February 23, 1977; The Royal Residence, Munich, March 15–April 30, 1977; The Provincial Museum, Bonn, Germany, May 1–18, 1977; The Hermitage, Leningrad, Russian Federation, June 7–July 2, 1977; Museum of Western and Eastern Art, Kiev, Russian Federation, July 11–31, 1977; Pushkin Museum, Moscow, August 10–27, 1977; Ernst Barlach Haus, Hamburg, Germany, September 23–October 15, 1977; Oslo Kuntsforeningen, Oslo, Norway, March 16–April 10, 1978; National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, April 20–May 14, 1978; Castle Gallery, Kilkenny, Ireland, May 18–June 4, 1978; National Exhibition Centre, Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, July 1–16, 1978; Thames Art Centre, Chatham, Ontario, Canada, July 21–August 13, 1978; National Exhibition Centre, Timmins, Ontario, Canada, August 23–September 17, 1978; Northern Studio du Nord, Kapuskasing, Ontario, Canada, September 22–October 9, 1978.1978 McMichael
Thunder Bay, National Exhibition Centre, Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, Group of Seven: Canadian Landscape Painters, July 1–16, 1978, no. 5. Traveled to: Thames Art Centre, Chatham, Ontario, Canada, July 21–August 13, 1978; Timmins Museum, National Exhibition Centre, Timmins, Ontario, Canada, August 23–September 17, 1978; Northern Studio du Nord, Kapuskasing, Ontario, Canada, September 22–October 9, 1978.1988 McMichael
McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg, Ontario, Canada, Six Sketches: Thomas John (Tom) Thomson, Landmarks Series VII, October 16, 1988–January 22, 1989. (repr.) Traveled to: Woodstock Public Art Gallery, Woodstock, Ontario, Canada, July 20–August 20, 1989; Chatham Cultural Centre, Chatham, Ontario, Canada, August 26–October 1, 1989; Sarnia Public Library and Art Gallery, Sarnia, Ontario, Canada, November 24, 1989–January 8, 1990; Lindsay Gallery, Lindsey, Ontario, Canada, February 2–24, 1990; Laurentian University Museum and Arts Centre, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, March 28–April 22, 1990.2001 Oshawa
Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa, Ontario, Canada, The Birth of the Modern: Post Impressionism in Canadian Art, c. 1900-1920, November 1, 2001–January 2, 2002, no. 45, (repr. col.) Traveled to: Leonard and Bina Ellen Art Gallery, Montreal, February 19–March 30, 2002; Museum London, London, Ontario, August 3–October 13, 2002; Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, November 24, 2002–January 26, 2003; Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, April 10–June 29, 2003.Published References
Davies 1967
Davies, Blodwen. Tom Thomson: The Story of a Man Who Looked for Beauty and for Truth in the
Wilderness. Vancouver: Mitchell Press Limited, 1967, page facing 40 (repr. col.)Duval 1967
Duval, Paul. The McMichael Conservation Collection: A Catalogue of Outstanding Work by Tom
Thomson and the Group of Seven. Toronto: Clarke, Irwin, 1967, (repr. col.)Duval 1970
Duval, Paul. Canadian Art: Vital Decades, McMichael Conservation Collection. Toronto, Vancouver: Clarke, Irwin & Company Limited, 1970, (repr. col.)Mellen 1970
Mellen, Peter. The Group of Seven. Toronto, Montreal: McClelland and Stewart Ltd., 1970, p. 53 (repr. col.)Duval 1973
Duval, Paul. A Vision of Canada: McMichael Canadian Collection. Toronto: Sampson Matthews Limited, 1973, pp. 23, 171 (repr. col.)Murray 1984
Murray, Joan. The Best of the Group of Seven. Edmonton, AB: Hurtig, 1984, p. 47 (repr. col.)McMichael 1989
McMichael Canadian Collection of Art. McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Twenty-fifth Anniversary Edition, 1965-1990. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1989, p. 2 (detail repr. col.)Murray 1999b
Murray, Joan. Tom Thomson: Trees. Toronto: McArthur & Company, 1999, pp. 96–97 (repr. col.)Silcox 2003
Silcox, David P. The Group of Seven and Tom Thomson. Toronto: Firefly Books, 2003, p. 257 (repr. col.)Remarks
Examining the wood grain of the original panels (visible along the edges only) and the plywood backings, it appears that Autumn Birches and Autumn, Fall 1916 (1916.154) are the verso and recto of what was originally a single panel. (This conclusion is also supported by the original acquisition documents).
Record last updated June 14, 2018. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: Murray, Joan. ""Autumn Birches, Fall 1916 (1916.159)." In Tom Thomson Catalogue Raisonné. www.tomthomsoncatalogue.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=599 (accessed on May 1, 2025).