Miller Gore Brittain

Miller Brittain's most prized compositions date from the 1930s and 1940s, after he had returned home to Saint John, New Brunswick, following his studies at the Art Students League in New York. He remains the Canadian artist most closely associated with the Depression-era American art that celebrated the struggles and joys of the working man and his family. Mothers pushing baby carriages in the park, amateur actors rehearsing a play, a crush of shoppers in a market or on the street - these depictions of his neighbours and friends were Brittain's focus in the years before he enlisted in the Canadian Air Force. While in the service he produced a series of fine drawings of military life, most of which are now housed in the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa. As seen here, Brittain was not averse to illustrating the foibles of his subjects while remaining empathetic to their enjoyment of simple pleasures. His facility in handling compositions with multiple figures brought him greatly deserved attention in his monumental mural designs, and this is equally notable in Swimmers.