March Mist

Continental Galleries of Fine Art, Montreal, circa 1965 By descent to the present Private Collection, Connecticut, USA

A pioneer of Canadian Impressionism, Robert Pilot’s most renowned work focuses on the urban scenes and rural landscapes of Quebec. The artist famously painted the Laurentian landscapes, executed numerous views of Montreal, and sketched the villages of Baie St. Paul, depicting this region of Canada through the sentimental eyes of a local who considered it home. Pilot often painted en plein air and during these sketching trips, observed all the nuances of light and colour that define a Canadian winter. The artist captures the soft ambience of the winter season in this scene of a bustling Montreal street, perhaps depicting a south view of Sherbrooke Street towards the Roddick Gates of McGill University. The influence of Impressionism is evident in the artist’s muted palette of pastel greys and mauves, which casts a cold mist over the frost- tipped trees. Textural brushwork also lends a sense of authenticity to the scene, where thick snowbanks frame the slush-laden street with tracks made by the runners of horse-drawn sleighs. As a renowned practitioner of Impressionism in Canada, Pilot’s scenes of winter serve as an expression of this style in a quintessentially Canadian context.