Born in North Bay, Ontario, Gauthier spent most of his life in Toronto where he developed close relationships with members of the Group of Seven, including Franklin Carmichael and J.E.H. MacDonald. For 37 years, he worked for Sampson-Matthews in the art department, helping produce many of the works in this collection. Working directly for many years as A.J. Casson’s right hand man at this firm, the two became close friends and together they frequently went on sketching camping trips to the hinterlands of Ontario. Though most of his paintings were landscapes, Gauthier was also commissioned by the McMichael Canadian Art Collection to paint portraits of the members of the Group of Seven, with whom he sometimes exhibited his artwork. He was a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts and his works can be found today in the National Gallery of Canada and the McMichael Canadian Art Collection.

Though he spent a large portion of his life working for Sampson-Matthews, Gauthier only made one contribution to the silkscreen project. “Autumn Road, Haliburton” offers a vibrant view of a cold, early fall day in what is today the heart of the Muskoka Region cottage country outside Toronto. While some green remains, the trees’ leaves have begun their seasonal transition and vibrant reds and yellows brighten up an overcast and moody sky.