Grenville, Quebec, 1970

Roberts Gallery, Toronto The Art Emporium, Vancouver Private Collection, Montreal A.K. Prakash & Associates Inc., Toronto Private Collection, Toronto

Paul Duval, "A.J. Casson", Toronto, 1951, unpaginated Hubert De Santana, 'A Painter’s Life: A.J. Casson looks back on 60 years at the easel', "Canadian Art", Spring 1985, pages 64-69

"Grenville, Quebec" was painted during one of A.J. Casson’s rarer ventures into another province; the municipality of Grenville is situated on the Ontario-Quebec border along the Ottawa River. Casson painted extensively in Quebec from 1966 to 1975, staying with friends in the region. "Grenville, Quebec" captures a scene in transition. The green, yellow and ochre shrubbery suggest the shift from summer into fall. Common to Casson’s work throughout his career is a limited colour palette. In a 1985 interview, the artist recalls this strategy as being present since his early days with the Group of Seven, when “exhibitions were flaming with colour. Well, I’ve always thought that if you want to stand out, don’t follow the herd.” Speaking to Casson's village compositions, Paul Duval notes that, “even when no figures ornament their architecture, this Canadian artist's townscapes are pregnant with mood. Like the contemporary American realist, Edward Hopper, he has the ability to crystallize a moment, to make concrete and eternal the passing vision. It is as though the time-machine has suddenly ceased to function, in a world where the wind had stopped breathing and the shadows no longer moved and every blade of glass and cloud were fixed forever.”