North River, Quebec

Sydney Berne was born in Toronto in 1921 and attended Central Technical School where he studied water colours under Carl Shaefer and Peter Haworth and sculpture under Florence Wyle. He served with the Canadian forces in World War II and before returning he studied abstract impressionism in Paris under Andre Paul. Returning in 1946 he settled in Montreal and gained renown for his landscapes, seascapes and street scenes. His preferred medium was oil on canvas or board, but he did work in acrylics, watercolors, graphite, ink, etching, linocut and clay. His work was widely exhibited in both group and solo shows across Canada and in the U. S. and England. Berne was also known as Sidney Bernstein, A.C. Martin, R. Fisher and Hillier when he worked in different styles. Sydney Berne died in 2013.