NOT IDLE ARE THE ARTISTS OF SUMMER IDYLLS

NOT IDLE ARE THE ARTISTS OF SUMMER IDYLLS

This summer Masters Gallery in Calgary has been busy with a great show and sale most fittingly called “Summer Exhibition.” The show has had a wide selection of exceptional works of art including many of summer subject matter. The gallery's website banner page for this exhibition featured the esteemed colour woodblock print Summer Idyll by W.J. Phillips. Summer Idyll perfectly captures the essence of summer, and the peace and pleasure that the season brings. Many people choose to take time off and relax during the fair months of summer. The days are long and the air is warm, and the mood is usually that of general contentment.

For W.J. Phillips and generations of en plein air artists the summer may be relaxing but it is also a time for being very productive outdoors while the good weather permits it. Thus most artists have not been known to sit idle during the summer months, even if they have expertly evoked the idylls of summertime in their work, as W.J. Phillips has done in Summer Idyll. Phillips wrote the following excerpt about working as an artist during the summer:

At midsummer the prevailing, everlasting and monotonous green often sends the artist hurrying to the mountains or the seacoast, chased by swarms of mosquitoes. I spent one memorable night on a tiny remote island on Lake of the Woods. I had neglected to provide myself with cheesecloth or netting, so my head was under a blanket but the noise the pestilent insects made, quarrelling for standing room on the tip of my nose was informal, and rendering sleep impossible. I was up before daylight, and put in this longest sketching day of my experience, beginning with a sketch of the sunrise, and ending when it was too dark to see, with the sunset. There were short intervals for meals. That night we rowed as far away from land as we could, extended ourselves as comfortably as might be along the floor boards of the boat, and incidentally under the seats, letting the boat drift we composed ourselves to sleep, happy in the thought that we had fooled the mosquitoes for once.

Some summer seasons and some districts know not the mosquito. Two of the most delightful summers I have ever known were spent at Lake Muskoka. The greens were as triumphant there as elsewhere, but I refused to let them annoy me. The weather was glorious, the air was soft, the sandy shores inviting, and , best of all, no battalion of mosquitoes rose to the attack when one left the shelter of the cottage, no insectile Amazon pierced one's shrinking epidermis with her horny proboscis. It was impossible to stay indoors. My young family disported itself in the water and along the shore all day long. Here was an exceptional opportunity. I made sketches of the children nude or in bathing suits. They made splendid willing models.

Phillips was by no means the only artist to be thrilled at the prospect of getting outside to sketch prolifically en plein air. In 1889, J.E.H. MacDonald writes to a friend:

I’m still attending the Saturday morning [art] classes [with George Reid], Lewis. And making some progress of course. I can produce a study that has some semblance to the model. But I’m looking forward to greater improvement by outdoor work in the summer. [J.E.H. MacDonald to Lewis, 1889]

Taking advantage of the summer weather has been especially necessary in some of the country’s more formidable climates, such as the Rocky Mountains. From a small town in the British Columbia Rocky Mountains in 1914, A.Y. Jackson wrote about getting ready to depart since the summer weather was waning.

Lucerne B.C. Aug 29th 14. Dear Kids, Just packing up to leave the rocks for their winter rest. […] Great place for the summer here, no hot days to bother one. just pleasant. and cool at nights. Be good.
 Sincerely 
Alex

It is widely known that Tom Thomson sketched outdoors in Algonquin every summer from 1912 onwards until his death in 1917. He never took for granted the forgiving weather offered from the late spring through to the autumn. Here is a letter to J.E.H MacDonald dated July 22, 1915 describing the conditions of that particular month sketching and working.

Mowat, Ontario, July 22, 1915 Things are very quiet around the Park this summer, have so far had only 2 or 3 weeks work and prospects are not very bright as the people are not coming in as they were expected Of course there are a few jobs there are more guides than jobs I have made quite a few sketches this summer but lately have not been doing much and have a notion of starting out on a long hike and will likely wind up somewhere around the French River and go up the shore to Bruce Mines and later on may take in the Harvest Excursion and work at Yours truly 
Tom Thomson

Although brilliant autumn foliage and ethereal snow clad landscapes are mainstays in the history of Canadian art, we must not forget how active artists are and have been during the summertime. The artists' mentioned above are a minute percentage of countless Canadian artists to have brilliantly captured the essence of summertime in their work.

By: Jill Turner

BRONZE: A NOBLE AND ANCIENT ART FORM

BRONZE: A NOBLE AND ANCIENT ART FORM

Masters Gallery Vancouver has received numerous new acquisitions of patinated bronze sculpture by British Columbian artist, Cameron Douglas. Douglas’ sculpture is primarily figural with hints of both linear and curvilinear abstraction. Although Douglas’ work has a distinct and unique flare, the artist himself has noted historical and modern sculptors as part of his inspiration. In particular he noted the motivation he found in the work of cubist sculptors such as Jacques Lipchitz, Henri Laurens and Ossip Zadkine.

I have realized that so far all of the blogs here have been about two-dimensional art, such as paintings, prints or photographs. Therefore, I thought it might be nice to make mention of some three-dimensional art in light of our recent acquisitions. Since bronze is Douglas’ medium of choice, and is a metal that is always refreshingly cool to the touch, I thought it would be a suitable choice to consider on this hot summer day.

Almost since its discovery, bronze has been manipulated for tools and decoration. The Greeks and Romans sculpted with bronze. Perhaps laughably, the ‘Capitoline Wolf’ instantly springs to mind when I think of bronze in combination with Ancient Roman art. This famously iconic mythological bronze sculpture depicts a rather awkward and expressionless she-wolf being suckled by two rambunctious looking twin infants, Romulus and Remus (the same who reputedly went on to found the city of Rome) The she-wolf bronze has long been attributed to the 5th century B.C. with the two infants being added or replaced in the 15th century. The twins are rendered in the style of the early Italian Renaissance. In recent years, the ancient dating of the piece has been called entirely into question. But no matter, there are plenty of other bronze sculptures from ancient times to prove their popularity.

As mentioned above, Romulus and Remus were an invention of the early Renaissance. In Italy during the 15th century, bronze was an important form of high art. For example, although arguably the most famous high Renaissance sculpture is Michelangelo’s David (1501-1504), there was another significant sculpture of David executed in bronze that pre-dates Michelangelo’s by over half a century (circa 1440).

Moving forward into the 16th century, bronze is a featured medium for famous artists Giovanni Bologna (aka Giambologna) and Benvenuto Cellini. Giambologna’s bronze statue of Mercury is one of the most celebrated works of art of that century, and is copiously copied even to this day. For Cellini, his statue of Perseus is a tour-de-force in bronze. Bronze statues and sculpture for indoors and outdoors were a must have for the European Nobility of this time, particularly in Northern Italy.

Today the bronze sculpture created towards the end of the 18th and into the 19th century is often more closely associated with the decorative arts than with the fine arts. Consequently we deem the creators of bronze sculptures during this period to be further allied with craftsmen than with artists. I often lament that craftsmen have receive far less credit than fine artists in the mainstream history of art. Yet the 18th century produced one exceptional hand at bronze in Luigi Valadier. Valadier had a phenomenal ability to render detail and precision when casting his bronzes, and was a true artist of the medium.

Bronze was still thriving as an art form, or craft, in the 19th century. Like painting, the most popular centre for production had shifted from Italy to France. Most popular French bronze sculpture is often still associated with the decorative arts. Today you are more likely to find 19th century bronze sculpture for sale amongst antiques and furnishings than with fine art. Some 19th century French names of recognized sculptors include Pierre-Jules Mene and Antoine-Louis Barye. They are popular on the market today, and are collectively known as Animaliers for their vastly realistic bronze animals and birds.

When modernism debuted, bronze was not left behind as passé. Some exceptionally creative and foreword thinking sculptors helped to push bronze away from the realm of skilled craftsmen and back into the hands of fine artists. Most modern and avant-garde artistic movements have had a sculptural component, including impressionism and cubism. Impressionist Edgar Degas is known equally for his bronze ballerinas as for his paintings of ballerinas. Auguste Rodin is occasionally associated with impressionism, but receives stand-alone distinction for his mastery of bronze. Rodin’s masterpieces include the Burghers of Calais, The Gates of Hell and The Kiss.

The avant-garde cubist movement also had a sculptural component, with bronze at the forefront. Cubist sculptors created geometrically abstracted three-dimensional forms. Some admired artists include Constantin Brancusi, Jacques Lipchitz, Henri Laurens, and Alexander Archipenko.

20th century Canadian art has had its fair share of acclaimed artists working in bronze. Since Suzor-Cote’s time, artists such as Sorel Etrog and William McElcheran have had success on the Canadian art market. Joe Fafard is one of Canada’s most highly regarded contemporary artists. He creates amazing likenesses to farm animals and famous people in bronze with varying colourful patinas.

Bronze has had a consistent presence throughout the history of art: from the Bronze Age to early dynastic China, or from the ancient Greco-Romans passed down through European history, and then ultimately to contemporary art in Canada. Cameron Douglas’ works of art follow this long and honorable tradition of bronze art. In his work we can see the influence of the past (particularly through his interest in cubism) but we can also see his own creativity as he tackles new and engaging subject matter, both lighthearted and serious.

By: Jill Turner

Photo Credits:

1.Capitoline Wolf at Museo Capitolini, Rome from Wikipedia

2. Donatello. David at Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence from Wikipedia

3. Giambologna (Giovanni da Bologna). Mercury at the Louvre from Wikipeida

4. Antoine-Louis Barye. Wolf holding a stag by the Throat at the Brooklyn Museum

5. Edgar Degas. La Petite Danseuse de Quatorze Ans cast 1922 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art from Wikipedia

6. Auguste Rodin. The Burghers of Calais at the Musee Rodin, Paris from Wikipedia

7. Ossip Zadkine. Orpheus at the Sculpture Museum Park, Germany from Wikipedia

8. Joe Fafard. Diego from Masters Gallery, Vancouver exhibition and sale Farm Animals and Famous Folk

9. Joe Fafard. David Suzuki from Masters Gallery, Vancouver

10. Cameron Douglas. Road Apples patinated bronze, at Masters Gallery, Vancouver

11. Cameron Douglas. Taking Flight, Vancouver patinated bronze, at Masters Gallery, Vancouver

FROM NORWAY: NORDIC INSPIRATIONS FOR CANADIAN LANDSCAPE ART

FROM NORWAY: NORDIC INSPIRATIONS FOR CANADIAN LANDSCAPE ART

Before the close of the 18th century the wilderness was considered uncomely. People didn’t venture out into the ‘wild’ without purpose, particularly not for the sake of sheer pleasure. The enjoyment of nature was confined to that which was tamed by man: such as gardens or hunting parks. Only through necessity would travellers brave the mountain passes of the Alps or traverse the heavily wooded roads of the hinterland. Scarcely would people seek their solace or entertainment in backcountry, this would not have been considered an enjoyable affair. Yet, somehow in the era of romanticism this all began to change. The late 18th century brought the onset of a romantic ideology concerning the natural world that permeated into popular thought throughout the course of the 19th century. By the mid 19th century when nation building and nationalism was widespread, landscapes once detested began to take on new significance in many parts of the world.

These changing perceptions were embraced gladly in Nordic countries. It became beneficial to Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland to represent their landscape through art as a symbol of nationalistic pride. The rustic north was transformed from something to cower from into something of stoic beauty and something to exemplify the tough character of its people. In the 19th century Nordic mindset, the northern landscape was unique and special. This new found pride in ‘northerness’ conveniently coincided with the period in history that saw en plein air painting fervently take flight. This timely combination of the popularity of painting en plein air (especially in an increasingly impressionistic manner) and the cherishing of a landscape with a northern climate, topography, and natural light was to produce a distinct style of en plein air art in Scandinavian countries between 1880-1920 that would foreshadow the artistically brilliant landscape art in Canada in the early 20th century.

In Canada in the years around 1910, a group of restlessly ambitious fellow artists clung together as colleagues in the reputable commercial design firms of Toronto, as friends at the Arts and Letters Club, and as individuals sharing some yet fulfilled purpose to find through landscape art that which would truly glorify the Canadian landscape. In 1912 when two of these fellows, Lawren Harris and J.E.H. MacDonald headed to Buffalo, New York to casually view an exhibition of contemporary Scandinavian art, they likely did not intend to be confronted with a stylistic inspiration that would launch this fellowship of Canadian artists full force into their own nationalistic landscape art movement.

At the Buffalo exhibition Harris was struck by the similar ‘northerness’ found between the Canadian and Scandinavian landscape. He and his peers found parallels between what these nationalistic artists have achieved in their depictions of the northern landscape and the visions and ideals he and his peers hoped to realize for Canadian art. Harris said himself:

It is the enduring credit of the leading Scandinavian countries that they may be counted among those fortunate peoples who, despite external influences, have stoutly guarded their native artistic birthright. Their achievements in the field of painting, sculpture, architecture, and industrial design are refreshingly and unmistakably their own.

Directly from the Nasjonalgaleriet in Oslo, I would like to share some pictures of Norwegian landscape paintings from 1880-1920 that would have had an influence on the Group of Seven and their followers. Perhaps with the exception of Harald Sohlberg's Winter's Night in Rondane 1914, hopefully these findings present less publicized examples that illustrate the profound effect that Scandinavian art has had on Canadian art history.

By: Jill Turner

Photo credits:

1. Harald Sohlberg (Norwegian) Winter's Night in Rondane 1914 oil on canvas Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo

2. Edvard Munch (Norwegian) Flowery Meadown at Veierland 1887 oil on canvas Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo

3. Edvard Munch (Norwegian) Moonlight 1895 oil on canvas Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo

4. Eilif Peterssen (Norwegian) Summer Night 1886 oil on canvas Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo

5. Harald Sohlberg (Norwegian) Flower Meadow in the North 1905 oil on canvas Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo

6. Thorvald Erichson (Norwegian) Wooded landscape 1900 oil on canvas Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo

7. Harald Sohlberg (Norwegian) Summer Night 1904 oil on canvas Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo

HOW GOOD IS YOUR BACKSIDE: BEHIND PAINTINGS

HOW GOOD IS YOUR BACKSIDE: BEHIND PAINTINGS

Years ago I was wrapping up my undergraduate studies in art history and history, pondering my next steps. Looking back, I sheepishly admit that at the time a movie The Red Violin helped inspire me to continue towards a career in fine arts. The Red Violin is essentially a cinematic ‘provenance’ of an important 17th century violin. The plot follows the violin from its creation through all its subsequent ownerships and travels, whilst shifting back and forth to the contemporary specialists conducting extensive research upon the piece before it could be offered for commercial sale. I was absolutely captivated by the efforts made to research the entire history of ownership and whereabouts of this important violin, in an attempt to augment its credibility and worth. Most fortunately, such efforts are equally endeavored in the fine arts. Equipped with a new fervour to seriously pursue a career, I knew that I would oftentimes have the pleasure of investigating art. One soon finds that one of the best ways to delve into a historical painting’s past starts first by flipping it over.

A painting’s backside, aka verso, can be devoid of or richly adorned with notations, labels, seals, numbers, stamps and symbols. All of the above can be of great assistance when trying to piece together the: who, what, when, where, and how of a painting. Typically, for historical art the more decorous the backside the more beneficial. For this reason, the backside of a painting can be just as visually and intellectually rewarding as the imagery on the front. Artists’ finest works tend to be exhibited more often, leaving them covered with the labels of exhibitions and authoritative art galleries. Peter Ohler Jr. remembers years ago the awe of flipping over a very fine Lawren Harris panel Isolated Peak to find the backside was completely filled up by various show and gallery labels, with barely a square inch unadorned. He recalls now that the back panel was “like an old suitcase that had travelled around the world.” Everywhere a suitcase had been, it picked up another memento on location.

Some of the many things that can help in researching authenticity and provenance that you might find on the backside of a painting include old gallery and exhibition labels, estate stamps, signatures, hand-written notations, framers and art suppliers stickers, numbers, seals and ex-owners names. Historical Canadian art has many such clues. Old gallery labels for well respected dealers and galleries are desirable additions to the painting’s verso; they reinforce the merit of a work based on the knowledge that informed specialists of a previous era also heralded the work. If authentic, the antiquated labels themselves can physically attest to the genuine vintage of a painting. Some gallery labels from bygone eras in Canadian art history that are esteemed include the Laing Galleries, McCready Galleries, Dominion Gallery, Scott & Sons, Watson Galleries.

Another preferred type of label is that of the public institutions’ or societies’ exhibitions. These typically indicate that the work of art has been included in an organized showcase, implying that the work of art was previously well regarded. In some way or another the work held enough significance to warrant inclusion in an exhibition. Some examples of labels that denote important exhibitions are Canadian National Exhibition Graphis Arts Dept. labels, old Art Gallery of Toronto labels (now the Art Gallery of Ontario), Royal Canadian Academy annual exhibitions, or other museum shows, or shows abroad.

There are all sorts of notations hand-written on the back of paintings: scribbles, symbols, inventory numbers etc. Artists themselves might sign, title, date or make notes on the verso instead of or in addition to the front. Friends, family or experts of an artist have also been widely known to inventory, authenticate or categorize paintings in the artist’s absence or death. When Harris was in New Hampshire, he had Doris Mills inventory all of his work that remained in the Studio Building and various places around Toronto. She marked the back of his panels with a fractioned number, such as 1/26. The first number represents a grouping by subject matter: one for Arctic sketches, two for Algoma sketches, three for houses, four for Lake Superior and so on until group eight. The second number was the order in which she inventoried each group. After Tom Thomson’s untimely death his fellow artists stamped the sketches that remained in the studio with a monogram designed by J.E.H. MacDonald, and he and Lawren Harris noted ‘Not for Sale’ and ‘First Class’ to those they considered the finest.

By: Jill Turner

Have you ever wondered what something on the backside of your Canadian painting means? We invite you to EMAIL US pictures of anything you might be curious about, and we will see of we can investigate your backside.

THE PRACTICAL PHOTOGRAPH...

The Practical Photograph and the Diminishing Decadence of Descriptions

The gallery has had ample opportunities to reflect upon the advent of photography over the past year. We had a successful show of Richard Henry Trueman photographs of British Columbia and the Rockies from the late 19th century, and more recently we have had an online sale and show of early 20th century photographs called With Train and Grain: Expanding the Canadian Prairies in Photograph. We have also had the opportunity to develop a permanent presence for available historical photographs on our website, including a variety of Western Canadian subjects by numerous photographers.

Upon reflection it is amazing to see how far photography has come in a mere two centuries, especially when compared against other developments spanning thousands of years of art history. Not only is photography a highly respected form of fine art; it has also proven to be integral for documentation and visual aid. Today many photographers take pictures, or use photography in whole or part, with creative aims in mind. From the mid-19th century photographers used early photographic processes to document what they saw around them. Documenting the expansion of the Canadian Pacific Railway line westwards is a good example. Photography is also ever increasingly used as a visual aid, exemplified in the academic and commercial art industry alone through art history textbooks and art catalogues to the images used for online shopping.

The use of photography in daily life, and the art industry more specifically, has come so far it is difficult to imagine picking up an art catalogue or textbook with no photographs for visual reference. Before the widespread use of photography and improved printing techniques, how would an author or cataloguer relay what the art being discussed looked like to readers who haven’t seen the art? Some books and catalogues would include engravings copying paintings being discussed, but this would be far too costly and time consuming for a large or multi-volume catalogue of art. If an author or cataloguer wanted to give a sense of what a picture looked like it, they would simply have to describe it in writing, usually in great detail. Such was the case for picture dealer John Smith’s multi-volume A Catalogue raisonne of the works of the most eminent Dutch, Flemish and French Painters published in editions between 1829 and 1908 (most of which published in the 1830s).

The need for descriptive cataloguing has diminished nearly to redundancy since photography has been used in book publishing. When one can look at images of paintings the use of lavish and prose-like wording to describe art is no longer necessary, and may even seem like a foreign concept today. However, in 1829 when John Smith embarked upon cataloguing Old Master paintings in private and public collections across Europe wordy descriptions were necessary for the reader to visualize the paintings in the epic catalogue raisonne. In the 19th century cataloguers would have been well practiced at flowery cataloguing; but to today’s readers the style of these entries might seem over-the-top and even comical. I will conclude by leaving you with a selection of entertaining descriptions of Dutch Old Master genre painting entries from A Catalogue raisonne of the works of the most eminent Dutch, Flemish and French Painters. They attempt to convey the quality, mood, and/ or detail of the paintings being discussed. I hope you find them as amusing as I do!

1. A Pig-sty- of a highly picturesque appearance, in which are three hogs luxuriating in filth. A tub, partly overturned, and other objects, complete a picture which exhibits a faithful transcript of nature.

2. Twelfth Night- The subject is composed of about twenty persons, most of whom are exhilarated with liquor, and are indulging in the gayest excesses of mirth and jollity. Among the various groups may be noticed an old fellow (probably the king of the evening’s amusement), wearing a yellow dress and a napkin round his head, completely inebriated, whom a man and a woman are lifting on a table.

3. A Lady and her Page- This superlative bijoux of art represents the portrait of a lady of singular beauty, about twenty-three years of age; her fair countenance is seen in nearly a front view, and her dark hair is tastefully disposed in curls. She is elegantly attired in a white satin robe….she is attended by a page, habited in the fanciful costume of the period…

4. Villagers Merry-making- The scene of hilarity is represented as passing in front of a house of a picturesque appearance…. Mirth and conviviality prevail throughout the piece.

5. The Angry Man- A gentleman elegantly habited in a yellow jacket, with slashed sleeves, and blue hose; his countenance agitated with anger, and his right hand grasping the hilt of his sword, which he is in the act of drawing from its scabbard.

6. Villagers dancing and regaling- The cheerful scene is passing in front of some cottages occupying the right of the picture, one of which is distinguished by a vine growing luxuriantly over some trellis-work … A social group of four persons may also be noticed under the shade of the trellis-work, and in addition to these are an old man seated near a tilted cart with a jug in his hand, and the mirth-stirring fiddler mounted on a tub. The more distant scenery exhibits a continuation of the village. This most enchanting work of art is dated 1660.

7. A Hurdy-Gurdy Player- A merry fellow, of a florid complexion wearing a black slouched hat, and a dark purplish coloured cloak over a yellowish jacket. He is seated, playing an instrument. The figure in this clever little picture is seen to the middle.

All excerpts extracted from John Smith’s A Catalogue raisonne of the works of the most eminent Dutch, Flemish and French Painters published in editions between 1829 and 1908

By: Jill Turner

Photo credits

1 and 2. Exhibition posters for Masters Gallery shows featuring historical photography.

3. A historical photograph documenting a Frontier funeral (from a Yukon album)

4. An example of a contemporary art catalogue displaying high resolution colour photographs of the paintings in an exhibition (Masters Gallery Calgary's 30th Anniversary exhibition)

5. Interior title page of a 1908 edition of John Smith's A Catalogue Raisonne of the most eminent Dutch, Flemish, and French Painters.

SOME NOTES ON DRAWINGS

SOME NOTES ON DRAWINGS

Drawing is a noteworthy medium within the connoisseurship of fine art; being important to both collectors and art historians. Drawings can be an excellent choice for collectors who can frame their collections around the medium or include them to complete the story of a specific artist’s oeuvre. Novice and discerning collectors will recognize that drawings can be a good starting point for an art collection. As works on paper, drawings are often an affordable way of obtaining outstanding examples by highly marketable or historically significant artists whose paintings on panel or canvas sell in the highest, and often less obtainable, league. Furthermore, the medium is often used for sketching in the preliminary stages of an artistic process, and can therefore be used by historians and connoisseurs for research and insight into an artist’s techniques. Drawing can also be intentionally used as the medium of choice for a stand-alone finished work of art, often adding an additional dimension to an artist’s oeuvre.

For Group of Seven artists such as Lawren Harris and A.Y. Jackson, whose drawings have both been published, the medium was frequently used for rapid sketchbook notations en plein air. Their drawings often preceded the popular oil panel sketches that the Group members are known for, and marked the first step towards a finished panel or even canvas. In a publication of Harris’s sketchbook drawings art historian Joan Murray remarked that, “drawings take us some distance into the artistic life of Lawren Harris.” Harris’ sketchbook drawings were intimate and display quick yet accomplished draughtsmanship; which often included notations regarding colour, place or theme as seen in White Mountains, near Sugarloaf, New Hampshire. They were not necessarily intended to be seen by the public. The drawings with notations are an excellent primary source for research and understanding the artists. Well-known artists and friend of Harris noted that “his drawings are a key which open the door to what he was thinking and painting.

Lawren Harris himself understood the importance of drawings in an artist’s career; not just as studies for finished works, but as completed works of art themselves. He wrote an essay in 1945 to accompany his friend Emily Carr’s retrospective exhibition. Within he devoted much attention to her charcoal drawings. He felt that her charcoal drawings held “her widest range of expression and experimentation.” Emily Carr used drawing both as a means to flesh out ideas for the bigger picture and for completed works of art. In her 1990 publication Emily Carr, Doris Shadbolt proclaimed, “drawing was a natural habit with Carr…[and] is an important and relatively little-known body of her work.” Shadbolt stated that Carr produced innumerable drawings for nature in pencil, charcoal, or brush, ranging from small sketchbook drawings… to more developed compositions, like Inside a Forest. Shadbolt mentioned that a group of, “small sketchbooks first in 1929 and 1930 were the basis for a group of studio drawings done at the same time but of a larger format… and on good quality paper,” as seen in Inside a Forest. Like Lawren Harris, Doris Shadbolt insisted upon the importance of Carr’s drawings to “tell us about…[the] inventive artist.”

Another British Columbian artist who is well-known for using meticulously detailed graphite sketches as the first step towards subsequently creating watercolours and then finally canvases, was E.J. Hughes. Like Harris, he would include notations throughout. However, he too was know to use the medium for completed works of art, as seen in his graphite portrait of F.W. Guernsey.

With the credit that scholars have given to drawings, and the real feasibility of adding them to art collections, drawing is clearly a fine art medium that warrants a good look!

By: Jill Turner

Photo credits:

1. Lawren Harris White Mountains, near Sugarloaf, New Hampshire, 1935, graphite on paper

2. Emily Carr Inside a Forest charcoal on paper, circa 1929-30, 24.5 x 29 in.

3. E.J. Hughes Portrait of F.W. Guernsey, Stanley Park Fort graphite on paper

CANADIAN ARTISTS IN EUROPE

CANADIAN ARTISTS IN EUROPE

A great majority of acclaimed Canadian artists throughout the past two centuries have spent time in Europe nurturing their artistic careers. Canadian art throughout the 19th and 20th centuries has always embodied a distinct ‘Canadianness’; whether this is the romantic landscapes of Krieghoff and Kane, Canadian Impressionism, or the more distinct Group of Seven and their followers. However, most important Canadian artists have travelled to Europe to study, and in some cases taken up permanent residency. Particularly in Paris, artists have found a stimulating and supportive environment for developing their artistic careers. Although work executed on Canadian soil and of Canadian subjects might be of greater interest to some, it cannot be overlooked that for many Canadian artists their work in Europe has reflected pivotal periods in their careers.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Canadian artists in Paris would have immersed themselves in an all-encompassing artistic environment. They would spend their days in training at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, the Academie Colarossi or the Academie Julian. They would then spend free time congregating with their peers in the creative climate of the boulevard cafes. At this time, Impressionist and subsequently Post-Impressionist movements were at their heights, and both would have lasting effects on visiting Canadians. William Brymner was the first to go and experience Impressionism first hand. He took much away from this experience, and encouraged his own art students back in Montreal to take post-graduate courses in Europe. Artists who travelled to study in Paris academies or elsewhere in Europe included Blair Bruce, Paul Peel, J.W. Morrice, A.Y. Jackson, Suzor-Cote, Edwin Holgate, Albert Robinson, Clarence Gagnon, Laura Muntz, George Reid, Maurice Cullen, Frank Armington, William Clapp, Helen McNicoll, Emily Carr, and Robert Pilot.

Emily Carr went to study in Paris in 1911. She recalled that her goal was, “…to find out what this “new art” was about.” She also spent time in Brittany at St. Efflam and Concarneau. This marked a notable turning point in her artistic career. She embraced post-impressionistic ideals; letting go of realistic representation in favour of bold colour and dynamic brushwork.

In 1912, shortly after Emily Carr sojourned in France, Edwin Holgate went to Paris to study at the Academie de la Grande Chaumerie. Like Carr, he also visited Concarneau in Brittany to paint. Holgate was in Russia and then back in France during World War One, and returned in 1920 to Paris to resume studying art, this time at the Academie Julian. His mentor was Russian artist Adolph Millman, whose art would have a lasting stylistic impression on Holgate. In 1922, Holgate travelled to the south of France, including the seaside town of Sanaray, before returning to Canada.

While most Canadian artists returned to Canada after a period of study, some artists remained in Europe permanently. James W. Morrice went to Paris in 1890, where he first studied at the Academie Julian and later under tutelage of Barbizon painter Henri Harpignies. Morrice befriended those in artistic circles of the time, easily transitioning into the boulevard café lifestyle. Morrice returned almost yearly to Canada for visits, and associated with Canadian artists when they came to Europe, like Maurice Cullen. He made Paris his permanent home, and sketched around Europe frequently. He travelled around France, Italy and Northern Africa. He visited Dennemont and Antwerp in 1906.

Frank Armington was another Canadian artist who made Paris his permanent home from 1905 to 1939. He first went to Paris to study at the Academie Julian in 1899. After a brief few years back in Canada, moved back to Paris with artist wife Caroline. He is known for his impressionistic rendering of Parisian sites, such as the Jardin des Tulieries.

By: Jill Turner

Photo credits:

1. Emily Carr. Portrait of a Woman, Brittany, (France) 1911, watercolour, 14.75 x 11 in.

2. Edwin Holgate. Sanaray (France) 1922, oil on panel, 5.25 x 6.75 in.

3. James W. Morrice. Antwerp (Belgium) 1906, oil on panel, 8.5 x 10.5 in.

4. Frank Armington. Jardin des Tuileries, Paris 1916, oil on canvas, 20 x 24 in.