Paul Archibald Octave Caron

Paul Caron studied under William Brymner, Maurice Cullen and Edmond Dyonnet at the Art Association of Montreal. Cullen was a Canadian Impressionist and an advocate of plein air painting, and his influence can be felt in this fresh and appealing sketch, which is imbued with the immediacy that comes from being produced on the spot. Long fluid brush-strokes in grey and taupe set a neutral foreground that brings the focus to the interactions of horses and people in the street. Above them loom the striking historic buildings of Rue Bonsecours, one of the oldest streets in Montreal, which exhibited a range of French architectural styles from the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries. At the end of the street is a picturesque church spire highlighted against a pale blue sky with drifting clouds. Caron was well known for his fine city scenes of Old Montreal and Quebec City, as well as landscapes of the Laurentians and Baie-Saint-Paul. The National Gallery of Canada includes his prints, a pastel and a watercolour in their collection, most of which are street scenes.