Frederick Horsman Varley

Frederick Horsman Varley (1881 - 1969) was a founding member of the Group of Seven Artists. He was born in Sheffield, England and immigrated to Canada in 1912 on the advice of another future Group of Seven member Arthur Lismer.

Varley served in World War I as a War Artist. He accompanied Canadian Troops in the Hundred Days offensive from Amiens, France to Mons, Belgium. His experiences on the front are captured in his paintings.

Varley moved to Vancouver British Columbia where he became Head of Department of Drawing and Paining at School of Decorative and Applied Arts. He took a trip to the Arctic with fellow artists in 1938. Varley, along with other artists, visited the Soviet Union in 1954 on the first cultural exchange of the Cold War.

On May 22 1981 Canada Post issued a stamp "Frederick H. Varley, Self Portrait"

Sources:

• Wikipedia
• Art History Archive