Sold for: $43,875

PROVENANCE
Acquired directly from the Artist by John Bland, Dean of Architecture at McGill University, Montreal, 1951
A gift from the above to a Private Collector, Vancouver
Sold sale of Fine Canadian Art, Heffel Fine Art Auction House, May 25, 2005, lot 53
The Art Emporium, Vancouver
Private Collection, Vancouver

LITERATURE
Lois Darroch, Bright Land: A Warm Look at Arthur Lismer, 1981, page 151

In 1951 Arthur Lismer traveled to Long Beach on Vancouver Island and also explored Pender and Galiano Islands. He was to return to Vancouver Island every summer thereafter for 16 years. The change of landscape brought a fresh vision to Lismer. He was struck by the power of the great forests and the light, which was so different from the east. He knew Emily Carr and had even sketched with her in Victoria on an earlier trip, and although his depiction of nature was not as mystical, he was certainly aware of the life force present in the coastal forest. Lois Darroch writes about the British Columbia work that “Lismer’s paintings were nevertheless filled with the earth force, the vitality that was undeniably his mark. The colours of his palette were more restricted. Green predominated, for he was surrounded by the lush vegetation of the forest, and growth was the essence of the life Lismer loved.” Here we see an equal strength between the rich, deep blues of the ocean and the lush greens of the forest edge, thickly painted with vigorous brush-strokes and illuminated with the full force of summer light.

All prices are in Canadian Dollars