Eventide, Toronto Skyline (circa 1932), circa 1932

The Estate of the Artist. Private Collection, Ontario.

A lovely and poetic atmosphere in this work records an image of Toronto as it once existed, more than eighty years ago, before the city's transformation towards a world-class centre of the twenty-first century. Sheppard's depiction of the skyline includes the prominent and towering outline of the Canadian Bank of Commerce building, the 34-storey structure enjoying the status of being the tallest building in the Commonwealth from 1931 to 1962. The two accompanying images provide a view of the Toronto skyline during the 1930s (Toronto archives photograph) and a detailed view of the Canadian Bank of Commerce building during the late 1930s (tinted postcard). A framed copy of the tinted postcard accompanies this lot.