Lionel Lemoine Fitzgerald Canadian, 1890-1956

Lionel LeMoine FitzGerald (1890–1956): Canadian Modernist Painter, Group of Seven Member, and Art Educator

Lionel LeMoine FitzGerald, L.L.D., was a renowned Canadian painter, printmaker, draftsman, and educator, best known as the only member of the Group of Seven based in Western Canada. Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on March 17, 1890, FitzGerald spent his entire career capturing the quiet beauty of prairie life, becoming a leading figure in Canadian modernist art.

Lionel Lemoine Fitzgerald; Mountain View

FitzGerald’s work is celebrated for its delicate compositions, precise detail, and contemplative stillness. His subjects often included the Manitoba landscape, backyard gardens, quiet interiors, and intimate still lifes, reflecting his belief that meaningful art could emerge from the familiar and immediate. Over time, his painting style evolved from Impressionist influences to more spare, abstract, and stylised forms, anticipating post-war modernist trends in Canadian art.

Artistic Training and Early Career

FitzGerald began drawing as a child and studied evenings at A.S. Kesztheyli's Art School in Winnipeg between 1909 and 1912. He later travelled to New York to study at the Art Students League (1921–1922) under Boardman Robinson and Kenneth Hayes Miller, an experience that significantly shaped his mature style. He exhibited with the Royal Canadian Academy as early as 1913 and held his first solo exhibition at the Winnipeg Art Gallery in 1921.

To support his family, he worked in window display design, interior decoration, and theatre set painting, all while steadily developing his fine art practice. In 1912, he married soprano Felicia Wright, with whom he had two children.

 Felicia Wright

Group of Seven and Modernist Vision

FitzGerald joined the Group of Seven in 1932 following the death of J.E.H. MacDonald, becoming its final member before the group disbanded and reformed as the Canadian Group of Painters in 1933. Although aligned with the Group's commitment to a distinctly Canadian art, FitzGerald's work diverged in its introspective tone and lack of nationalistic grandeur. He sought to animate the canvas through the balance of form, colour, and line, saying he wanted “to make the picture a living thing.”

His most famous painting, Doc Snyder’s House (1931), exemplifies his precise, meditative approach, blending geometric structure with quiet observation. His later work, such as The Little Plant (1947) and Abstract Green and Gold (1954), show a turn toward abstraction while maintaining his hallmark subtlety and care.

Lionel Lemoine Fitzgerald; Doc Snyder’s House

Educator and Influence

In 1924, FitzGerald joined the faculty of the Winnipeg School of Art and was appointed Principal in 1929, a role he held until 1947. During this period, he influenced numerous Canadian artists and corresponded with Bertram Brooker, helping shape Brooker’s move from abstraction to realism. His dual role as teacher and artist required careful time management, contributing to a relatively modest but highly refined body of work.

Legacy and Recognition

FitzGerald died of a heart attack in Winnipeg on August 5, 1956. His ashes were scattered in Snowflake, Manitoba, where he had spent summers as a child. In 1952, he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Manitoba. His memory is honoured in Winnipeg with “Fitzgerald’s Walk,” and his legacy lives on through numerous exhibitions and a strong presence in major collections.

Major Exhibitions Include:

• 1921: First solo show, Winnipeg Art Gallery

• 1927: Musée du Jeu de Paume, Paris

• 1935: Malloney Galleries, Toronto (with Brooker and Munn)

• 1958: Memorial exhibition at the National Gallery of Canada

• 2019–2020: Into the Light, McMichael Canadian Art Collection

Collections Featuring His Work:

• National Gallery of Canada

• Art Gallery of Ontario

• Winnipeg Art Gallery

• McMichael Canadian Art Collection

• Art Gallery of Hamilton

• Hart House, University of Toronto