He was employed as a
graphic designer with Toronto's Grip Ltd., an experience that honed his
draughtsmanship. Although he began painting and drawing at an early age,
it was only in 1912, when Thomson was well into his thirties, that he
began painting seriously. His first trips to Algonquin Park inspired him
to follow the lead of fellow artists in producing oil sketches of
natural scenes on small, rectangular panels for easy portability while
traveling. Between 1912 and his death in 1917, Thomson produced hundreds
of these small sketches.
Thomson disappeared
during a canoeing trip on Canoe Lake in Algonquin Park on July 8, 1917,
and his body was discovered in the lake eight days later. The official
cause of death was accidental drowning but there are still questions
about how he actually died. There are many different rumours and
theories that surround Thomson’s mysterious death. In September 1917
artists James E. H. MacDonald and John W. Beatty, assisted by area
residents, erected a memorial cairn at Hayhurst Point on Canoe Lake,
where Thomson died. Although the Group of Seven was not officially
founded until after Thomson's death, his work is sympathetic to that of
group member’s A. Y. Jackson, Frederick Varley, and Arthur Lismer. These
artists shared an appreciation for rugged, unkempt natural scenery, and
all used broad brush strokes and a liberal application of paint to
capture the stark beauty and vibrant colour of the Ontario landscape.
