Sold for: $18,750

PROVENANCE
Watson Art Galleries, Montreal, 1956
By descent to the present Private Collection, Vancouver

LITERATURE
“John Little Shows Varied Subjects,” The Gazette (Montreal), November 30, 1957, page 37, https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=Fr8DH2VBP9sC&dat=19571130&printsec=frontpage&hl=en, accessed February 25, 2017

This fine painting looking south on McTavish Street in Montreal was painted by John Little in the mid-1950s. Little’s interest in architecture was an integral part of his oeuvre, and he had a great fondness for Montreal’s historic buildings and neighbourhoods. The view portrayed here is an autumn scene, with a charming red building on the left (sadly no longer standing), and behind it the Presbyterian College of Montreal, which is now Morrice Hall at McGill University. In the distance, the towering Sun Life Building dominates the skyline—completed in 1933, the 26-storey building became a Montreal landmark. Little exhibited with the prestigious Watson Art Galleries in Montreal, one of the pioneer supporters of Canadian artists such as Maurice Cullen. Little’s vision of the city brought him great acclaim. Reviewing a solo exhibition of Little’s work at Watson Art Galleries in 1957, the Montreal Gazette noted that the artist “reveals zest, industry and not a little endurance in the generous collection of his paintings of Old Montreal and Quebec streets, houses and countryside.” McTavish Street, Montreal is a fine example from the early years of Little’s illustrious career.

All prices are in Canadian Dollars