Lot 148: Maurice Galbraith Cullen 1866 - 1934 Canadian

Maurice Galbraith Cullen 1866 - 1934 Canadian pastel on paper on board Sunglow, Near St. Marguerite's North River 24 x 32 inches 61 x 81.3 centimeters signed and on verso titled, inscribed ""Ex.12.1934"" on the Watson Art Galleries label and certified by Cullen Inventory #1111 Literature:A.Y. Jackson, A Painter's Country, The Autobiography of A.Y. Jackson, 1958, page 16 Provenance:Watson Art Galleries, Montreal By descent to the present Private Collection, Ontario Maurice Cullen is considered a father of Impressionism in Canada. Group of Seven painter A.Y. Jackson credits Cullen with making younger generations in Montreal aware of the invigorating new movements in France, and stated, "To us he was a hero. His paintings of Quebec City, from Lévis and along the river, are among the most distinguished works produced in Canada." A master of the medium of pastel, Cullen made his own colours from earths and pigments (artist Charles Henry Fromuth had given him his secret recipe for their preparation). He avoided mixing the pastels on the paper, instead applying each one directly from a wide range of individual hues. This ensured a vibrancy of colour and the ability to depict delicate impressions of light, as seen here in the warm creamy tones of glowing light on snowbanks and darker reflections in the river. The work is enlivened by warm and cool colour contrasts throughout, with the emerald green intermingled with orange, rose and flesh tones in the river being particularly exquisite. This is a stunning example of Cullen's enduring theme of Laurentian rivers in winter.