Sold for: $49,250

PROVENANCE
Galerie Walter Klinkhoff Inc., Monteal
Galerie Alan Klinkhoff, Montreal
Private Collection, Quebec

LITERATURE
A.K. Prakash, Impressionism in Canada: A Journey of Rediscovery, 2015, the similar circa 1950 canvas entitled Twilight, Mountain, Hull, Quebec reproduced page 633

Robert Pilot was born a generation after the early Canadian Impressionists. He was considered to be the last artist in Canada who chose to paint in this style, which he was devoted to all his life. The Impressionist artist Maurice Cullen was his stepfather, and Pilot absorbed much from him, as an apprentice in his studio and while accompanying him on outdoor sketching trips.

Pilot was devoted to the soft light he found in Quebec - in Montreal, Quebec City and the Laurentians. He was expert at capturing the moody atmospheres he found there, such as in this charming canvas with its traditional Quebec architecture and lively street scene filled with pedestrians going to and fro. The light, filtered through high clouds, casts a warm hue over the scene. The soft brushwork is finely handled, from the trampled snow in the street to the sure definition of the building details. The river behind, breaking up into ice pans and traversed by a small boat, likely a ferry, adds a floating, watery contrast to the composition. Mountain Hill, Quebec, with its sensitive portrayal of winter light, is a classic Impressionist work by Pilot.

All prices are in Canadian Dollars