Autumn Colour

Canadian Fine Arts, Toronto Private Collection, Toronto

Often painting en plein air, Johnston was devoted to representing the Canadian landscape through his work. More atmospheric and decorative in terms of style, Johnston developed from the looser expressive brushwork he originally experimented with, opting for flattened planes of colour. The fiery oranges and bright yellows are subtly contrasted with the blues and greens of the sky and remaining summer leaves of the trees, peaking through the dense autumn foliage. Striking formal lines of the dark brown trunks and branches of the central trees divide the image plane vertically, creating additional contrast within the composition. The artist’s commitment to light’s effect on colour is evident in the varying shades of orange as the sunlight shines through the translucent leaves of the trees.