Inventory # PCRE-10102-0003

PROVENANCE
Acquired directly from the Artist by the Long family, England
By descent to the present Private Collection, England

LITERATURE
Janet Braide, Anne Savage: Her Expression of Beauty, Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, the similar canvas Lake at Evening, reproduced page 80
Anne McDougall, Anne Savage: The Story of a Canadian Painter, the similar canvas Lake at Evening, reproduced page 126

EXHIBITED
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Anne Savage: Her Expression of Beauty, the similar canvas Lake at Evening, catalogue #16

The house is likely in the town of Lac-des-Seize-Îles (Sixteen Island Lake), a short walk from Savage’s cabin and studio on Lake Wonish. Savage became well known in the village, whose houses and church were frequent subjects for her painting. She would visit throughout the year, not just in the summer high season - making her a favourite among the locals who lived there year-round. The beauty of life in the Laurentians during winter is captured here, with the swirling snowed hills providing a dramatic backdrop for the home, brightly highlighted with green-painted trimming. A canvas of the same subject entitled Winter Morning was offered by Heffel in May 2010 (lot 137). The verso of the work shows a still lake (probably Wonish) at dusk, moodily lit under a heavy sky. Savage notably would paint her sketches regardless of the weather, preferring to execute her views quickly but meticulously - capturing the essence of the landscapes she was so familiar with. A similar canvas entitled Lake at Evening (circa 1943) is in the collection of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

This work, along with lots 534 and 535, is from the collection of the Long family. Helen Long was a close friend of Savage’s, growing up with the artist in Montreal and later spending summers with her family at Savage’s cabin on Lake Wonish in the Laurentians. These works were acquired by Helen directly from the artist and have since been held in the collection through the family. This is the first time that they have been brought to market.

In 2021, the McMichael Canadian Art Collection presented the exhibition Uninvited: Canadian Women Artists in the Modern Moment, including 15 paintings and over 60 drawings by Savage.

All prices are in Canadian Dollars

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