Housed in log and fieldstone buildings among the wooded hills of the Humber Valley, this gallery features one of the largest displays in existence of paintings by the Group of Seven, considered the first truly Canadian school. Eight Canadian painters are credited with forging a uniquely Canadian art by painting, in a revolutionary way, the colours and landscapes of the country's wilds. Pioneer Tom Thomson (1877-1917) died before the group was formed, but his influence was substantial. The original members were Lawren Harris, A.Y. Jackson, J.E.H. MacDonald, Franklin Carmichael, Arthur Lismer, Frederick Varley and Frank Johnston. In 1952 Robert and Signe McMichael bought land in rural Kleinburg, decorating their home with Group of Seven paintings. In 1965 they donated their collection and property to the province of Ontario. Subsequent gifts by such individuals as R.S. McLaughlin have enlarged the collection. The ground level is devoted largely to the group's precursor, Tom Thomson; to A.Y. Jackson, "grand old man of Canadian art"; and to Lawren Harris, the "soul" of the group and a prime leader in Canadian art for decades. Examples by artists influenced by the seven, notably Clarence Gagnon, Emily Carr and David Milne, are also displayed.