Literature
Dennis Reid, “Krieghoff: Images of Canada”, Vancouver/Toronto, 1999, pages 44, 54-55 & 163, page 16 for a similar work “Canadian Interior”, “French Canadian Habitants Playing at Cards” (lithograph) reproduced page 33
Hugues de Jouvancourt, “Cornelius Krieghoff”, Toronto, 1973, pages
43 and 56, “French Canadian Habitants Playing at Cards” (lithograph) reproduced page 28
Marius Barbeau, “Cornelius Krieghoff: Pioneer Painter of North America”, Toronto, 1934, page 126, possibly listed page 126 as “Habitants Playing Cards”
Genre paintings - artworks depicting scenes of ordinary life - were immensely popular in Britain, the United States and much of Northern Europe in the first half of the 19th century - a tradition that harkens back to the Dutch genre paintings executed in the 17th century. Genre painting was not simply a depiction of ‘everyday life’, but incorporated other elements to convey an underlying moral message. Cornelius Krieghoff’s depiction of ordinary life as subject matter in his work was innovative in the Canadian context. Drawing upon his studies abroad and informed by the rich tradition of genre painting, Krieghoff’s highly productive period of the late 1840s focused on depictions of Quebec habitants. As Marius Barbeau suggests, “French-Canadians have a sense of fun which thoroughly appealed” to the artist. The partiality Krieghoff showed for the domestic village life of French-Canadians signified his development as a mature artist. Krieghoff was certainly aware of the widespread popularity of genre painting and possessed the qualities and intimacy of a genre painter. He lived among the French-Canadian people and embraced their lifestyle. As Hugues de Jouvancourt shares, Krieghoff was, “An easygoing man, he enjoyed evenings spent in playing cards with the French-Canadian ‘habitants’ and drinking quantities of ‘whisky blanc’. Seated around the table, warmed by the alcohol, the card players gave full rein to their racy speech whose intonations and accent so delighted the artist.”
“French Canadian Habitants Playing at Cards” of 1848 is a compositional delight, brimming with immense detail, rich colour and descriptive tone. The work exudes the innocent humour and care-free tone of neighbours playing cards in the idle hours of a winter evening. Krieghoff presents a simple room with minimal furniture, as the focus is upon the figures grouped around the table. The composition presents a variety of narratives: the card player revealing his ace card to the viewer; two figures disputing the game at left; a man smoking a pipe whilst pursuing the attention of the woman at the table; the child stealing apples from the rumpled tablecloth while the adults are distracted; a man holding a cane admonishing a young woman with children at right. The painting is rife with drama and activity, drawing the viewer into the scene as though they have simply stepped away from the table for a moment and will soon rejoin the card game.
Dutch genre paintings traditionally had moral overtones, remarking upon the vanities of worldly pleasures and the dangers of vice. Krieghoff is not quite so ethically or morally conscious in this painting, with little evidence towards the inclusion of any overt symbolism. However, Krieghoff has included ample indications of the lifestyle of these characters in the various still life arrangements scattered throughout the scene. A pipe lies forgotten on the floor; an apple peel appears to have fallen from the table, while the other half of the apple peel and a knife reside on the table, acting as perhaps a symbol of temptation or signifying the object of the game. A loyal companion, a small dog sleeps comfortably at the feet of its master, a component often used in Dutch genre scenes. Conventions of rural life are exemplified in the placement of pots by the bed lower right, the simple decorative wall adornments of a clock and diminutive, perhaps religious paintings. The characters’ costumes are expertly rendered, from the blanket cloth coats to the tuques and colourful “ceintures fléchées” presented in lush colours. One key element of the work is the placement of Krieghoff’s signature. The artist has inscribed his name on a trap door in the floor, in the lower left corner. Perhaps Krieghoff was imbuing this work with symbolism, leaving a few mysterious quirks for his viewers to decode.
The subtle drama of the scene is expertly conveyed in the faces of the characters, at some points appearing almost like caricatures with exaggerated expressions. Viewing this artwork in 2014, Dennis Reid noted, “The quite detailed brushwork in the faces and other areas of visual concentration is impressive.” The intimacy of Krieghoff’s “French Canadian Habitants Playing at Cards” is created by the play of light and shadow, leading the viewer to observe the range of activities taking place in this intricate scene. Showcasing Krieghoff’s technical skill, the main cast of characters at the table are presented clearly, perhaps filtered by natural light, as there are no candles in view. These figures appear as a vignette, with the surrounding features of the room descending into the shadows. The figure in the back left corner appears almost ghost-like, appearing out of the gloom. The complexity of the composition conveys Krieghoff’s creative imagination and ability to execute a commanding domestic scene that is layered with meaning, subtleties and painterly skill. “These ‘Canadian Interiors’ remained an important theme in Krieghoff’s work for at least the next three years,” notes Reid. “The focus is very much on the figure groupings, of usually only three or four in these small pictures, and the narrative is consequently simpler, more empathic, often broadly comic.”
Lithography was very popular during this period and Krieghoff intended for a handful of his paintings to be produced as lithographs. Recognizing the commercial benefit of this endeavour, Krieghoff garnered the patronage of Lord Elgin, the Right Hon, the Earl of Elgin & Kincardine Governor General of British North America. In 1848 Krieghoff selected four of his most appealing paintings to be reproduced as a set by A. Borum in Munich, to be produced on a grand scale in either black or white or in colour. This included the oil painting, “French Canadian Habitants Playing at Cards”, as well as “Place d’Armes à Montreal”; “Sledge Race near Montreal”; and “Indian Wigwam in Lower Canada”. These lithographs were an immediate success and sold well, presenting the French-Canadian people as self-assertive, strong and culturally rich. As Ramsay Cook argues: “With his background in Dutch and German genre painting, Krieghoff has a different goal: to portray the human condition, not to elevate his viewers above it. Indeed, his pictures often seem designed to make the viewer part of the incident depicted, to bring the viewer inside the picture. Krieghoff saw what he painted; then he transformed it into art.”
Marius Barbeau, respected historical biographer of Krieghoff, may be referring to this monumental work, “French Canadian Habitants Playing at Cards”, in his catalogue of paintings by Krieghoff as, “Habitants Playing at Cards”, c. 1848. Barbeau lists Sir Campbell Stuart, the Canadian newspaper magnate, as the owner of the painting in 1934. Barbeau quotes Sir Campbell Stuart’s opinion of the canvas: “I consider it to be one of the finest I have seen, and that is the general opinion...I have seen many prints of it (in lithograph or colour).” Barbeau suggests that the work was obtained from Senator Edwards of Ottawa, but that the canvas “may have belonged first to John Young, of Quebec.”
Krieghoff was an artist attuned to the interests of his audience and was beloved by collectors during his lifetime. The legacy of “French Canadian Habitants Playing at Cards” as a treasure within his artistic oeuvre is further solidified by the rarity of a canvas with such an abundance of figures, exquisitely rendered detail and narrative strength. Krieghoff produced dignified paintings that were romantic in nature, evoking the deep roots of the people he encountered and leaving a view of historical Canada in his vision. Reid argues for “the complex genesis of Krieghoff’s images of Canada”, in which this canvas holds a prominent place.
This lot is sold together with: Cornelius Krieghoff, “French Canadian Habitants Playing at Cards” (1848), colour lithograph, titled and inscribed “Painted by C. Krieghoff”, “Printed by Th. Kammerer & Lith. by A. Borum, Munich” and “Published in the patronage of the Right Hon. the Earl of Elgin & Kincardine, Governor General of British North America” in the margin; 13.5 ins x 19.25 ins (subject size).
