Sold for: $64,900

PROVENANCE
Galerie Walter Klinkhoff Inc., Montreal
Private Collection, Toronto

LITERATURE
Sarah Mainguy, "Aux sources de l’art de Fortin: les années 1910," Marc-Aurèle Fortin: l’expérience de la couleur, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, 2011, pages 70 and 76

EXHIBITED
Musée Marc-Aurèle Fortin, Montreal, Exposition, May 1990, catalogue #P444
Musée national des beaux arts du Québec, Quebec City, Marc-Aurèle Fortin: l'expérience de la couleur, February 10 - May 8, 2011, traveling to the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg, catalogue #22

During the 1910s, Marc-Aurèle Fortin produced a number of winter scenes, which bore witness to his masterful approach to light. In this view of Montreal, white, ecru, light yellow, pastel blue and lavender impastos melt into each other, creating a soft, frosty, Turner-inspired sky. Fortin's palette is lighter than usual, and his whites are crisp and luminous. The foreground showcases a rarely seen view of Montreal, which includes a few figures and Fortin’s classic red sleigh. In the distance, the dome of the Marie-Reine-du-Monde cathedral appears faintly in white and powder blue. Although mostly known for his portrayal of Quebec rural life, Fortin also painted Montreal cityscapes, especially from the mid-1910s to mid-1920s. According to art historian Sarah Mainguy, Fortin’s interest in the urban landscape is most probably rooted in his training with Ludger Larose and Edmond Dyonnet in Montreal, and with Edward J. Timmons at the Art Institute of Chicago.

This work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné on the artist’s work, #H-0052.

All prices are in Canadian Dollars