A Northern Night 1917

Frank Johnston made this painting, A Northern Night, using oil on canvas. Look at how the brushstrokes in the sky pull downwards, like soft, shimmering curtains. This piece feels like a memory, a place Johnston once visited or imagined. The magic of this painting is how the dark blues and whites play together. The snow isn't just white; it's got blues and grays mixed in, giving it depth. Then you have those stark tree trunks piercing the sky. Notice how they’re not perfectly straight, each with its own little wiggle, a sort of hand-drawn quality against the ethereal light of the Aurora Borealis. I think of Lawren Harris and the Group of Seven - Johnston was briefly a member - but there’s something more intimate here. While the Group of Seven aimed at a grand statement about Canadian identity, Johnston captured a personal moment. In the end, this is about how a painter sees light and tries to catch it, like fireflies in a jar.