View of Quebec from Lévis, 1904

Walter Klinkhoff Gallery, Montreal Peter Bronfman, Toronto Masters Gallery, Calgary Private Collection

A.K. Prakash, "Impressionism in Canada: A Journey of Rediscovery", Stuttgart, 2015, page 321

Following a six year stay in Paris and further travels through the French countryside, in 1895 Maurice Cullen exhibited at the Salon and was the first Canadian to be offered an associate membership to the Societé nationale des beaux-arts. Despite his growing success in France, the artist chose to return to Montreal that same year. Cullen was determined to give Canadians the opportunity to appreciate the impressionist art he admired in Paris, and to portray the Canadian landscape in this preferred style. He began to exhibit his works in 1896, which received overwhelmingly positive reviews. In the early 1900s Cullen was exhibiting regularly in Montreal and garnered more significant recognition from critics. He was awarded a bronze medal at the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis, Missouri; this success motivated Cullen, together with William Brymner, to build a studio in Saint-Eustache, northwest of Montreal. Every year he travelled up and down the Saint Lawrence River between Montreal and Quebec to paint his surroundings. Here, Cullen depicts a favourite subject of Quebec painters, "View of Quebec from Lévis", in his quintessential impressionist style which lends itself perfectly to the subtle and monochromatic colour palette of the snow and ice-covered river scene. Cullen created a completely new vision of the Canadian wilderness, which influenced the next generation of landscape artists including the Group of Seven. A.Y. Jackson praised these works, remarking: “To us [Cullen] was a hero. His paintings of Quebec city, from Lévis and along the river are among the most distinguished works produced in Canada.”