For the month of September 2025, we are are proud to present the renowned Italian-Canadian artist, Albert Chiarandini - also known as the "The Unknown Group of Seven Member".
Exhibit Schedule
Opens: August 30, 2025
Grand Reception: August 30 | 2-4pm. All welcome. Complementary refreshments provided.
Closes: October 1 | 3pm
About the Artist
Albert Chiarandini was born on September 30, 1915, in the northern Italy city of Udine (Friuli-Venezia Giulia).
As a boy, he passionately loved to scribble and draw and could often be found copying religious subjects. Using powdered colours mixed with water and his father’s old shaving brush, he rendered these figures on the plaster walls of a woodshed his father allowed him to paint. Having never been taught autonomy, the recreations had a strange, hunchbacked look.
Albert taught himself well, and by the age of fifteen, he had earned an apprenticeship at the workshop of the renowned Udine sculptor, Luigi Moro.
Immigration to Canada
In 1932 at the age of 17, Albert immigrated to Toronto, Canada. Determined to pursue his dream of being an artist, he applied and was accepted to the Ontario College of Art where he studied under the guidance of Franklin Carmichael (member of the Group of Seven), Frederick Challener, John William Beatty and John Alfsen.
Portraits
Albert always had the desire to portray people in their environment, observing their instincts, mannerisms and lifestyles, and he began to paint several large series of portraits depicting the diversity of the human condition. These paintings often depicted homeless individuals, who he recruited from Allan Gardens in Toronto and the streets surrounding the Salvation Army.
In 1967, Albert began painting in the region of Yorkville Avenue, Toronto. Through the instrument of portraits, Albert captured the faces of political turmoil and of the dynamic change occurring in Yorkville. Here, for him, was a different attitude to be recorded - a new idiom to be captured: a driven, younger generation full of idealism, equality and peace. These portraits of young hippies, transient and searching, are truly beautiful
This collection of work immediately gained Chiarandini recognition as a serious, professional and extremely gifted portrait painter. A series of portrait commissions quickly followed, with many of these subjects still iconic in the history and cultural identity of Toronto and Ontario.
Landscapes
Between portrait sessions, Albert expanded his artistic range through landscape painting, often employing impressionist techniques reminiscent of those used by the Group of Seven. He said that "Landscapes allowed him to explore the profound beauty of nature, echoes of light and the smell of the countryside.” In this pursuit, Albert had truly gifted company. He was friends with Donald Fraser, and shared exhibition space with Franklin Carmichael, A.J. Casson, Arthur Lismer, Fred Varley, Lawren Harris Jr., Joachim Gauthier and A.Y. Jackson (among others) – Group of Seven members and associates - at annual exhibitions of the Ontario Society of Artists, Royal Canadian Academy and Gallery of Hamilton.
An unexpected outcome of his landscape work was its role in creating a distinctive and valuable historical record of Richmond Hill, Aurora, Newmarket, and other once rural but now well-known neighborhoods. His paintings of fields now hold subdivisions. Vistas with immense, free-flowing skies have given way to high-rises and industrial sprawl. Yet, through the beauty of his work, those moments endure.
Later Life & Legacy
Albert produced over 3000 works of art. In 2004, a large collection of his paintings was donated by the late Mr. Bruce Smith to the Georgina Arts Centre and Gallery in Sutton West. This major body of his landscapes, portraits and still life is on permanent display and has been included in the book "The Group of Seven Project", which cites Albert as "The Unknown Group of Seven Member." The event garnered him much attention. Few artists, particularly Canadian, have been honored with this level of public exposure and support from a public gallery.
Albert Chiarandini passed away on December 18, 2007, in his 93rd year. Passionate about the power of art and the beauty of our Canadian landscapes, Albert was not only a reminder of a revolutionary era in Canadian painting, but also an established voice, in his own right, for Canadian art.
Visit the Albert Chiarandini website
TLN Originals Documentary
In 2024, TLN Originals produced the documentary, Albert Chiarandini: The Eighth Member of the Group of Seven, providing a fascinating exploration of Albert's his life and legacy.
WATCH: Albert Chiarandini Documentary by TLN Originals
Special thanks to Rudy Chiarandini for permission to reference and use Albert Chiarandini’s official biography.
