James Wilson Morrice (August 10, 1865 – January 23, 1924) was one of the first Canadian landscape painters to be known internationally. He studied at the
Académie Julian in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
, where he lived for most of his career. James Morrice Street in New Bordeaux,
Ahuntsic-Cartierville,
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
is named in his memory.
Biography
Morrice was born in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
,
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
, the son of a merchant, and studied law in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
from 1882 to 1889. In 1890 he left to study painting in England. The next year he arrived in Paris, where he studied at the
Académie Julian from 1892 to 1897. At the Académie Julian, he befriended
Charles Conder
Charles Edward Conder (24 October 1868 – 9 February 1909) was an English-born painter, lithographer and designer. He emigrated to Australia and was a key figure in the Heidelberg School, arguably the beginning of a distinctively Australi ...
and
Maurice Prendergast
Maurice Brazil Prendergast (October 10, 1858 – February 1, 1924) was an American artist who painted in oil and watercolor, and created monotypes. His delicate landscapes and scenes of modern life, characterized by mosaic-like color, are ...
, and also met
Robert Henri
Robert Henri (; June 24, 1865 – July 12, 1929) was an American painter and teacher.
As a young man, he studied in Paris, where he identified strongly with the Impressionists, and determined to lead an even more dramatic revolt against A ...
. He then took lessons at the atelier of
Henri Harpignies
Henri-Joseph Harpignies (; June 28, 1819 – August 28, 1916) was a French landscape painter of the Barbizon school.
Life
He was born at Valenciennes. His parents intended for him to pursue a business career, but his determination to become a ...
, who encouraged his students to paint
en plein air
''En plein air'' (; French for 'outdoors'), or ''plein air'' painting, is the act of painting outdoors.
This method contrasts with studio painting or academic rules that might create a predetermined look. The theory of 'En plein air' painting ...
.
Morrice continued to live in Paris until the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, although he spent most of his winters in Canada and travelled widely abroad. He made many connections in the intellectual circles of Paris, while also remaining in touch with the Canadian art world. He exhibited at the
Salon d'Automne
The Salon d'Automne (; en, Autumn Salon), or Société du Salon d'automne, is an art exhibition held annually in Paris, France. Since 2011, it is held on the Champs-Élysées, between the Grand Palais and the Petit Palais, in mid-October. The f ...
(1905) and joined the
Canadian Art Club in Toronto (1907).
During this period he was also in contact with the literary milieu, with English expatriate intellectuals living in Paris, such as
W. Somerset Maugham
William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...
,
Arnold Bennett
Enoch Arnold Bennett (27 May 1867 – 27 March 1931) was an English author, best known as a novelist. He wrote prolifically: between the 1890s and the 1930s he completed 34 novels, seven volumes of short stories, 13 plays (some in collaboratio ...
, and
Clive Bell
Arthur Clive Heward Bell (16 September 1881 – 17 September 1964) was an English art critic, associated with formalism and the Bloomsbury Group. He developed the art theory known as significant form.
Biography Origins
Bell was born in East S ...
. In 1911, he wrote
Edmund Morris that there was excitement in London over the ''Post-Impressionism'' exhibition. As he wrote,
Everybody laughed and jeered but with a few exceptions it consisted of good things - art that will last.
In the winters of 1912 and 1912-1913, he stayed in
Tangiers
Tangier ( ; ; ar, طنجة, Ṭanja) is a city in northwestern Morocco. It is on the Moroccan coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar, where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel. The town is the capi ...
. His second trip coincided with a trip by
Matisse
Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a drawing, draughtsman, printmaking, printmaker, and sculptur ...
whom he met and with whom he exchanged ideas about art. He was elected an honorary non-resident member of the
Royal Canadian Academy in 1913.
With the advent of World War I, Morrice went to Montreal, and then to
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
. There he began to succumb to
alcoholism
Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...
. The output of his last period is uneven and infrequent. In the summer of 1922 he travelled to
Algiers, where he painted with
Albert Marquet. This would be the last time that he painted, as his health began to rapidly deteriorate. He died, aged 58, in
Tunis
''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois
, population_note =
, population_urban =
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, utc_offset1 ...
.
Gallery
Morrice's paintings before the turn of the century are thinly painted and inspired by
Whistler, both in sentiment and in treatment of colour. Just prior to World War I he began to paint, in a thicker style, winter Canadian scenes influenced by the
Impressionists
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...
and particularly by
Maurice Cullen, whom he met in 1897. Some of his works during his Caribbean period are considered his best and are painted in a loose style influenced by
Post-Impressionism
Post-Impressionism (also spelled Postimpressionism) was a predominantly French art movement that developed roughly between 1886 and 1905, from the last Impressionist exhibition to the birth of Fauvism. Post-Impressionism emerged as a reaction a ...
and suggest artists such as
Matisse
Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a drawing, draughtsman, printmaking, printmaker, and sculptur ...
. He is noted for his sense of observation and ability to distill the essence of what he saw in his work, often in "pochades", little sketches. "The artist with the delicate eye", Matisse called him in 1925.
* ''Prow of a Gondola, Venice'', 1897
National Gallery of Canada
The National Gallery of Canada (french: Musée des beaux-arts du Canada), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the ...
* ''Return from School'', 1901
* ''Quai des Grands-Augustins'', 1903. The
National Gallery of Canada
The National Gallery of Canada (french: Musée des beaux-arts du Canada), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the ...
* ''The Ferry, Quebec'', 1906. NGC
* ''Blanche Baume'', 1912. NGC
* ''House in Santiago'', 1915
Tate Gallery
Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...
* ''Village Street, West Indies'', 1919.
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts
The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...
File:James-Wilson-Morrice-Paris-Canal-Vers-1900.jpg, ''Paris Canal 1900'' Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal
The Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal (MACM) is a contemporary art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located on the Place des festivals in the Quartier des spectacles and is part of the Place des Arts complex.
Founded in 1964, it is ...
File:JAMES-WILSON-MORRICE-33.jpg, ''Venice c. 1900''
File:James-Wilson-Morrice-Dieppe-1906.jpg, ''Dieppe, 1906''
File:Morris Street Scene Pink Sky Paris 1908.jpg, ''Street Scene Pink Sky Paris'' c. 1908 Art Gallery of Ontario
The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO; french: Musée des beaux-arts de l'Ontario) is an art museum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The museum is located in the Grange Park neighbourhood of downtown Toronto, on Dundas Street West between McCaul and Bev ...
File:Morrice-La veille maison Holton a Montreal.jpg, ''Old Holton House, Montreal'', 1908-09 Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal
The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...
File:Morris23.jpg, ''Venice, c. 1910''
File:James wilson morrice 22.jpg, ''The Ferry, Quebec'' c. 1910
Image:Blanche Baume by James Wilson Morrice.jpg, ''Blanche Baume'', Oil on canvas, 1911–12, National Gallery of Canada
Recognition and legacy
In 1958, works by Morrice along with those of
Jacques de Tonnancour
Jacques Godefroy de Tonnancour, LL. D. (3 January 1917 – 13 January 2005) was a Canadian artist and art educator from Montreal, Quebec.
Life and work
Jacques Godefroy de Tonnancour was born on 3 January 1917 in Montreal, Quebec. He studied a ...
,
Anne Kahane
Anne Kahane (born March 1, 1924) is an Austrian-born Canadian artist. Best known for her figures carved in wood, Kahane began her career as a printmaker and commercial artist. In addition to her work as a sculptor using wood, brass, and aluminum, ...
and
Jack Nichols represented Canada at the
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...
.
The
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts
The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...
is one of the two main repositories of his work along with the
National Gallery of Canada
The National Gallery of Canada (french: Musée des beaux-arts du Canada), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the ...
. Montrealers David Rousseau Morrice (1903-1978) and F. Eleanore Morrice (1901-1981) willed to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts many works of art they had collected during their lives, published as ''A Montreal Collection: Gift From Eleanore and David Morrice'' and exhibited at the Museum in 1983. Several significant gifts have enhanced the National Gallery's collection, enhanced by major publications such as
Charles C. Hill's ''Morrice A Gift to the Nation The G. Blair Laing Collection'' (1992). In 2016,
Ash K. Prakash gave the National Gallery a major collection of Morrice, which the National Gallery exhibited as ''James Wilson Morrice: The A.K. Prakash Collection in Trust to the Nation'' (2017) and travelled nationally (2018-2019).
References
Further reading
*
* Ash K. Prakash: ''Impressionism in Canada. A Journey of Rediscovery.'' Pref. Guy Wildenstein, introd. William H Gerdts. Arnoldsche Verlagsanstalt, Stuttgart 2014, 2. Aufl. 2015 (illustr. book, with expl. One chapter on James Wilson Morrice
Figure_''Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré''_from_1897.html" ;"title="Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré">Figure ''Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré
'' from 1897">Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré">Figure ''Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré
'' from 1897on the publishers page)
External links
Web site by Morrice specialist Lucie DoraisBiography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''A large gallery of paintings by Morrice on the National Gallery of Canada's website.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrice, James Wilson
1865 births
1924 deaths
Académie Julian alumni
Artists from Montreal
Canadian male painters
Canadian landscape painters
Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts
Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada)
19th-century Canadian painters
20th-century Canadian painters
Canadian Impressionist painters
19th-century Canadian male artists
20th-century Canadian male artists