The Embassy of Canada in Washington, DC is currently hosting the exhibition Many Lives Mark This Place, highlighting 11 large-scale paintings by the prominent Canadian artist John Hartman. Hartman embarked on this project to capture the intimate relationship that notable Canadian authors have with their personal places of inspiration.
Guided by his literary interests, Hartman selected subjects who then chose the backdrop for their portraits. In many cases, the landscapes were unfamiliar to Hartman, requiring years of work to capture them on canvas. He traveled the breadth of Canada to study these disparate places. The results are larger than life-sized and place the subjects not in, but against, their landscapes – suggesting touchstones of inspiration and ideas for each. The portraits celebrate the richness of Canada’s literary fabric and speak to the power of the imagination in experiencing the diverse landscape that connect the country.
John Hartman’s portrait paintings and the essays written by the 11 featured Canadian authors provide a rich overview of the many complex and poignant stories embedded in the Canadian experience.
Many Lives Mark This Place is on display until September 30, 2024, in the Embassy’s art gallery located at 501 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W. in Washington, DC. The gallery is open to the public Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm, free of charge. Please visit us!