Johnny

William Winter, 1964 (approx.), Oil Paint on Pressed Board

William Winter studied art under two members of the infamous Group of Seven, Frank H. Johnston and Lionel LeMoine Fitzgerald, at the Winnipeg School of Art from 1923-1929. He moved to Toronto in 1937, where he established an advertising firm. In the evenings and on weekends, he spent much of his time sketching in cafes, streetcars and street corners. His passion lied in capturing the human story. 

In 1955, Winter left his career in commercial art to work as an independent artist. In the 1960s, Winter taught drawing and painting at the Ontario College of Art. During this period, he also travelled and painted in Italy, Spain, Greece, and Mexico. His work is housed in museum collections across Canada, including the National Gallery of Canada, and the Art Gallery of Ontario, and abroad.

Classified as a Canadian post-war modernist, Winter was a sensitive creator whose lively, colourful figures assumed a witty, almost mythical character. He is best known for his paintings of children. As Winter explained, “I paint with a great deal of nostalgia. I paint my own boyhood.” He painted in oil, acrylic, and watercolour, and drew with pencil and coloured chalk. 

Born: Winnipeg, Canada, 1909
Died: England, 1996

Ron Kennedy

Johnny was donated to the Kawartha Gallery by the family of Ron Kennedy, the founder of KYI (Kawartha Youth Incorporated) in 1970 which later became the BGC (Boys & Girls Club). Kennedy dedicated his life to working with disadvantaged and disabled youth. He believed in the potential of young people and he recognized that many of them were in need of additional support in order to achieve success. Over the decades, the BGC has grown into a diverse organisation that acts as a home away from home for the hundreds of children who benefit daily from the club’s programs and services. The Ron Kennedy Scholarship, set up by his family in 2020 for the club’s 50th anniversary, is another way in which his legacy lives on.