George Campbell (Cam) Tinning, known as Campbell Tinning, (February 25, 1910 – February 28, 1996) was a Canadian painter, graphic designer, muralist, and illustrator. He was an Official Canadian War Artist in World War II; the only one born in Saskatchewan. After the war, he resided in Montreal but travelled extensively and painted in every Canadian province, the United States, Jamaica, Italy, France, England and Scotland. In 1970, he was elected a full member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.

Early life

Tinning was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, on February 25, 1910. He studied art in Winnipeg, Manitoba and Regina, Saskachetwan. Some of the Tinning family photographs are in the McCord Museum collection. In 1938, he attended the

Eliot O'Hara Eliot O'Hara (June 14, 1890 – July 30, 1969) was an American artist and educator known for his masterful watercolors, especially his impressionistic landscapes. The Ogunquit Museum of American Art in Maine has over 120 of his watercolors repre ...

School of watercolour in Maine and the

Art Students League of New York The Art Students League of New York is an art school at 215 West 57th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may stu ...

. He moved to Montreal and in 1940 became a member of the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour. He exhibited at the

1939 New York World's Fair The 1939–40 New York World's Fair was a world's fair held at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York, United States. It was the second-most expensive American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchas ...

. In 1940, he was employed as a graphic designer at The

Robert Simpson Company The Robert Simpson Company Limited, commonly known as Simpson's until 1972, then as Simpsons, and in Quebec sometimes as Simpson, was a Canadian department store chain that had its earliest roots in a store opened in 1858 by Robert Simpson. I ...

(Simpson's department store) at its St. Catherine Street location in downtown Montreal. In 1942 and 1948, he was awarded the Jessie Dow Prize for watercolour at the Art Association of Montreal.

World War II

After serving in the Reserves, Tinning enlisted in the Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) in 1942 as a private. In 1943, he was appointed official war artist with the Historical Section of National Defense Headquarters as a lieutenant. Posted to Nova Scotia and

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

, he painted east coast military installations throughout 1943. He was sent overseas and served in England, Italy, and the Netherlands. He was promoted to Captain in 1945 and returned to Canada where he was honorably discharged in 1946. He completed over 500 pieces as a Canadian War artist which are now in the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa.

Post-War

Tinning settled in Montreal where he established his studio. In 1949, he travelled and painted in Newfoundland for two months. He exhibited these watercolours at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and published an article on his experiences in Canada's newest province. From 1948 to 1953, Tinning illustrated travel articles for the ''Lincoln-Mercury Times,'' a magazine published by the Ford Motor Company,

Dearborn Dearborn may refer to: People * Dearborn (surname) ** Henry Dearborn (1751–1829), U.S. Secretary of War under President Thomas Jefferson, Senior Officer of the U.S. Army during the War of 1812 Places in the United States Forts * Fort Dearborn, ...

, Michigan. Notably, one of these was written by Aldous Huxley in 1951 on

Lydiard Tregoz Lydiard Tregoze is a small village and civil parish on the western edge of Swindon in the county of Wiltshire, in the south-west of England. It has in the past been spelt as Liddiard Tregooze and in many other ways. The parish includes the small ...

, a house in a village in Wiltshire, England. In the 1950s and 1960s, Tinning completed graphic designs for the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and the

Ritz Carlton Hotel The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC is an American multinational corporation, multinational company that operates the Hotel#Luxury, luxury hotel chain known as The Ritz-Carlton. The company has 108 conference and resort hotels, luxury hotels a ...

in Montreal. Apart from some prestigious patrons of the English Montreal establishment, many banks, hotels, stores, and factories commissioned works by Tinning. A series of template watercolours inspired by a

French-Canadian French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fr ...

legend was designed for rooms at the Manoir Baie Comeau, Quebec, in the 1960s; they were later destroyed by fire. Tinning’s 1960 mural for the Jenkins Valve Company in Lachine, Quebec, was destroyed during demolition of the factory in 2004, though photos of the mural are available

an

Sketches for this mural are preserved at the Lachine Museum in Lachine, Quebec. In 1960, the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Montreal commissioned Tinning to design the Maritime Bar. The hotel, renovated and reopened in 2012, still owns about 60 of his works. In 1953 he was elected an Associate Member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts and he became a Full Member in 1970. Although Montreal remained his home and was his constant inspiration, Tinning also enjoyed rural Quebec – especially the Eastern Townships around

Lake Memphramagog Lake Memphremagog (; french: Lac Memphrémagog) is a fresh water glacial lake located between Newport, Vermont, United States and Magog, Quebec, Canada. The lake spans both Quebec and Vermont, but is mostly in Quebec. Most of the watershed that ...

. He frequently visited family in the Okanagan and painted in this region of British Columbia. In the 1970s Tinning experimented with abstract compositions. He painted floral still life throughout his career and it was his most popular genre. Tinning had solo exhibits at many galleries across Canada including the Vancouver Art Gallery in 1942 and Walter Klinkhoff Gallery, Montreal, Quebec in 1963. During the 1980s and 1990s his war art paintings were included a numerous group exhibitions such as ''Canadian Artists of the Second World War'' at the Robert McLaughlin Gallery in Oshawa, 1981, ''The Sweetest Spring'' at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa, 1989, and ''Victory Parade: Canadian War Artists in Holland 1944-45'' at the Legermuseum in Delft, Netherlands, 1991. In 1994 Tinning held his last solo exhibition at the Dominion Gallery, Montreal, two years before his death. His works are in many public collections, including the National Gallery of Canada, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and the Canadian War Museum. Tinning died in Montreal on February 28, 1996.

Posthumously

There have been three exhibits of the work of Campbell Tinning since his death. The Moose Jaw Museum and Art Gallery curated a solo exhibition of Tinning war art in 1999 and more recently ''The Newfoundland Paintings''. ''Canvas of War: Masterpieces from the Canadian War Museum'', was held at the Canadian War Museum, 2000, and subsequently toured across Canada until 2004.

References

Bibliography