An Artistic Journey with Tom Thomson

Dr. Barry T. Brodie’s new book, Tom Thomson: On the Threshold of Magic, was launched on April 6, 2017, in Windsor, Ontario.

Tom Thomson chronicles Brodie’s creative journey as he researched historical records, spoke to Thomson family members, and developed his new play, Threshold of Magic: The Death and Life of Tom Thomson. “Barry Brodie has accomplished something quite astonishing… he has created a compelling meditation of the creative process,” said Bob Steele of CBC Afternoon Drive. The book, which also includes the script of the play, takes the reader through the drama, humour, and tender struggles of Dr. Brodie’s endeavours to honour one of Canada’s greatest painters.

In his landscapes Tom Thomson (1877–1917) captured the essence of the Canadian wilderness. Although he was never an official member of the Group of Seven, his impressionist work was an important factor in its development. He drowned under mysterious circumstances while canoeing in Algonquin National Park.

Dr. Brodie is a playwright, director, and actor and teaches a course on the creative process at the University of Windsor. From the mid-1980s to 2004 he collaborated with Canadian poet-philosopher Kenneth G. Mills in adapting Dr. Mills’s lectures and poetry for the stage. More recently, he co-founded Sho Art, Spirit, and Performance in Windsor, which brings together artists dedicated to innovating, collaborating, producing, and presenting art across all creative borders.

Tom Thomson: On the Threshold of Magic is published by Black Moss Press in co-operation with the University of Windsor’s editing and publishing practicum. Every year, under the guidance of Windsor’s poet laureate Marty Gervais, a team of students edit, design, market, and launch a book in close cooperation with Black Moss Press and the author. The practicum is the only course of its kind in Canada and centres on the practical skills and structure of the publishing industry.

Stay tuned for more details about Dr. Brodie’s play and its upcoming performances.

Back to Blog Back to Home

Leave a Reply