Logging in Northern Ontario

About Logging in Northern Ontario

A torrent of turquoise water rushes between a mountainous crevice as four loggers work their pike poles to move great pine timbers down river to a sawmill. This classic northern Ontario scene was painted by William Parsons. Its earthy palette contrasts with the clear blue of the boiling waters, and the colours of the loggers’ shirts in blue, green and red. The energy is palpable in this realistic portrait of river driving—a dangerous generations old profession that pitted strength and skill against nature. One can almost hear the men’s cries as they attempt to lance and direct the massive logs.

“William Parsons shared with us a kaleidoscope of the Canadian and particularly the Ontario landscape…and the love he had for this country came vividly alive on his canvas.” Hans Juliane

Born in Toronto, (1909-1982) Parsons studied at the Ontario College of Art in 1930 un the tutelage of Canada’s best known landscape artists, J.W. Beatty, Arthur Lismer, and J.E.H. MacDonald—the latter members of the famed Group of Seven. Parsons worked as a painter, draughtsman, drawing and designing commercial art. He is best known for his landscapes of the Canadian wilderness and particularly the Ontario landscape. Parsons' work is held in private and corporate collections in Canada, the U.S., Great Britain, South America, and Japan.