Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, Twenty-First Annual Exhibition, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, February 15, 1900, no. 152
Women’s Art Association of Canada, Twelfth Annual Exhibition, Toronto, February 22 - March 8, 1900, no. 68
Literature
Evelyn de R. McMann, Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, Exhibition and Members, 1880-1979, Canada, 1981, listed page 298
Joan Murray, “Laura Muntz Lyall: Impressions of Women and Childhood”, Montreal/Kingston, 2012, page 28 & page 144 (listed)
Laura Muntz was first exposed to the tenets of Impressionism while undertaking artistic training in Paris from 1891-1898. She then adopted the use of light and open, fluid brushwork in her own compositions. The rich tones of Muntz’s swift brushwork in “Girl with Blue Bowl” creates a sensation of gentleness and warmth, evoking the impression that a single moment has been captured, while emphasizing the personality of this young girl. Muntz was genuinely interested in the aesthetic representation of children and had a kinship with her young subjects. As Joan Murray remarks, “With children, she was always at ease. Meeting them, she immediately won their affection or adoration… She calmed some of those who sat for painting sessions by letting them join in the process.” Although sadly childless herself, Muntz lived a life surrounded by children. She was a schoolteacher upon moving to Canada, and later became the caregiver of her deceased sister’s eleven children. Muntz’s depiction of domestic scenes not only reveal a consistent study of her most treasured subjects, women and children, but illustrate the female experience of Canada in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
We extend our thanks to Joan Murray, Canadian art historian, for assisting with the research related to this artwork.
