Art in the Park
Spring, Ontario, 1953.
“Greetings,” Raith said.
“Hello,” said a middle-age, gray-haired, slightly portly man, carrying much camping gear.
“You look prepared to be out here, but I am just wondering if you need any assistance?” the short, thin man with long, dark-black hair questioned.
“I am looking for the location where Rob Robson painted his most famous work, The Breaking Ice.”
“You have drifted from the provincial park trail and now are in the surrounding crown land. I can get you back on track,” Raith said, and they examined the hiker’s map, and he showed the hiker his approximately location. “You’ll have to camp overnight, but you should be able to get there tomorrow afternoon. I can lead you there.”
“I don’t wish to trouble you.”
It will be a lot more trouble if I have to rescue you, he thought. “No trouble, many people get lost and then need help. We don’t want you to be one of them.”
“I must admit, this trip might be slightly more advanced than my skill level,” the art enthusiast said. “It can be a little stressful out here. I welcome your expertise.”
“Do not worry, you’ll be safe with me.”
“What are you doing out here, if I may ask?”
“I was visiting a friend and decided to trek through this area. Like Robert, I am an enthusiast of the surroundings.”
“Yes, it’s very picturesque up here.”
“I know very little of Robert Robson. Can you tell me how he is seen in the world outside this wooded one?” asked Raith, genuinely intrigued.
“There is so much to tell you. I’ve studied him all my life, but I will try to answer without giving you details that you do not care about. He is, at this time and I’m sure in decades and possibly centuries to come, Canada’s top two or three most well-known artists. This is partially because of the circumstances of his death and some questions surrounding it. His art is among the best selling, in terms of prices of individual pieces, among Canadian artists. His work is in the most prestigious art galleries not only in Ontario but the rest of Canada.”
“Really? I did not know this at all. Impressive. Was he the best at what he did?”
“The art world is too subjective to definitively answer that. His technique was good and improving with each passing year, but it is his style that caught people’s imagination and inspired future artists. There was a group called The Six, even though one of them left after two years and they painted as a group for 17 years. Thus, for 15 years, there were only five members of The Six. They are famous throughout Canada and likely the world. Rob Robson was a precursor to that group and knew many of its members.”
“You said there were questions about his death, how so?”
“Officially, he drowned, but there are rumours that there was more to it. A person of German descent who was known to swing his paddle violently at others had an argument with Rob about possible outcomes of World War I. Rob accused him of being a US deserter. This person also was interested in the young woman Rob was seeing.
“Another theory concerned a party the night before. Rob was drinking heavily with a friend, and a fight ensued when the friend ridiculed him for failing on three attempts to enlist in the Boer war and World War I. The friend also accused him of unwanted advances towards his girlfriend. They fought and Rob was knocked out cold, but some suggest the friend actually killed Rob and put him in a canoe to hide his crime. This is unlikely as the ranger made notes in his journal that Tom was seen alive the next day. There are so many other theories out there.
“A vacationing medical doctor spotted an object in the water and asked some guides to investigate. It turned out to be Rob’s body. The doctor did a detailed examination about what he found and concluded it was an accidental drowning. There was a wound on his forehead consistent with hitting the side of the boat. The coroner was delayed, but when he did get there, he supposedly simply accepted the medical doctor’s conclusions. Many think he is likely competent, but he is not a coroner and might have missed something.
“Then there is the issue with the burial. They buried him near where he was staying two days after they found him and after the doctor’s medical examination but before the coroner signed off. The next day, they exhumed the body because his brother came and took him home on the train. They allowed this to happen even though the coroner did not sign off yet. Years later, people supposedly went to the local grave site and found bones that they thought were Rob’s but turned out to belong to someone else. Some people think Rob’s brother took a coffin of rocks home to be buried in the family plot.”
“Do you see merit in any of these theories? What about historians and the public at large?”
“The public wants drama and intrigue. They want conflict and something to whisper and gossip about like teenage girls. The public will deceive themselves with lurid tales, but if they took the time to look at it objectively, they would see that accidental drowning is the most likely scenario. Fellow artists are not historians, and they have their own biases, but most I think would agree on drowning, which is what the historians believe. There was a definitive book that came out two or three years ago right after World War II. It looked at all the claims, when the claims came about, why they came about, and, in almost excruciating detail, why each and every argument had no merit. It got a little repetitive after a while. The author’s final conclusion was that he drowned, and there was no evidence of foul play.”
“I guessed the art world was saddened by his death and his family heartbroken,” Raith said, unaware he was likely stating the obvious.
“From what I read, this is most definitely the case, and of course, such grieving is always present to some degree when anyone dies prematurely.”
“It is such a shame.”
“Indeed. Indeed.”
