Lot 118: Henrietta Mabel May 1877 - 1971 Canadian oil on

Henrietta Mabel May 1877 - 1971 Canadian oil on canvas Entrance to the Garden 22 x 18 inches 55.9 x 45.7 centimeters signed Literature:Paul Duval, Canadian Impressionism, 1990, page 104 Provenance:A gift from the Artist (who was the present owner's great-aunt) to the present owner's mother By descent to the present Private Collection, Ontario Following her studies under William Brymner at the Art Association of Montreal, in 1912 Mabel May journeyed to Europe, spending time in France, Belgium and Holland. While traveling, May found her inspiration in the canvases of the French Impressionists. Paul Duval writes, "For a decade after her return to Montreal, May's canvases exhibited a sensitive, even tender, Impressionist style, executed with a confident and relaxed technique," as demonstrated in Entrance to the Garden. This beautiful canvas depicts a mother and two girls, softly bathed in light, entering a garden. The mother's white dress gently billows in the wind, while just outside the gate another mother and daughter wait. May has captured them at the exact moment when they peer into the garden to gaze upon the flora. This delightful painting demonstrates her interest in integrating her subject into the natural environment. It was not until 1925 that May started to focus specifically on landscape painting, rather than people, under the influence of the Group of Seven.