1914-07-04abb

“The opening of the new art gallery of Hamilton this week is an important event in the history of the city, for from hence forward the citizens will have an opportunity of taking a first-hand interest in the work of the best Canadian artists.”

          Hamilton Spectator. July 4, 1914

          The previous year the Hamilton Public Library, taking advantage of a large grant from Andrew Carnegie, opened Hamilton’s second library building on Main Street West.

          The first Hamilton Public Library, then less than 15 years old, across the street also on Main, was vacant as the year 1914 began. However, there were definite plans to put that impressive civic space to good use.

          In late June, there was much activity at the old library buildings as volunteers gradually converted into a public art gallery.

          On July 4, 1914, a Hamilton Spectator shared his impression of the Art Gallery of Hamilton just days after it opened:

          “If it promotes and cultivates a greater and fuller realization of the artistic, the efforts of those who brought about the establishment of the gallery will be rewarded, and if the pictures which, in future will be exhibited, maintain the standard of excellence which the opening exhibition has set, it is difficult to see how it can fail to so.”¹

               ¹ “Review of the Pictures at the Art Gallery : Splendid Display Is Attracting Much Interest”

          Hamilton Spectator.  July 4, 1914.

          Of the 300 pictures put in place for the opening of the Art Gallery of Hamilton, only about half a dozen were the works of artists not from Canada, thereby fulfilling the Art Gallery’s vision of being a place thoroughly representative of national art.

          Noted Hamilton artist John Sloan Gordon was the honorary secretary of the art gallery, although it was formally admistered by a board of governors.

          The Art Gallery had set the opening hours of the institution as follows : Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturdays from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. The gallery would also be opened on public holidays.

          The Art Gallery would require no admission price, except on Wednesdays and Saturdays, when a charge of 25 cents would apply, in the hopes of defraying some of the operating expenses.

          The July 4, 1914 Spectator contained a detailed review of virtually every painting or at least section of the gallery, but the first review went to the artist William Blair Bruce and the collection of his works which formed a basis for the Art Gallery of Hamilton and which would remain on ‘permanent’ display:

          “The Bruce Collection, which is a permanent feature of the exhibition, has a room to itself, and it contains some of the best work of the Hamilton artist.

          “Facing the entrance is the largest canvas of all – Summer Day – which was painted at Grez in France. This work, which is beautifully executed in regard to shade and color, introduces portraits of the artist’s wife and sister.

          “In the center of the east wall is the Hawthorns, which is an excellent transcription of the half light of a summer evening. This picture gives a wonderful rendering of this effect, and is remarkably harmonious in color, the only fault being that the work does not appear to have been carried to the same state of completion as in some of the other canvasses in the collection.

          “The work is flanked on either side by marine pictures painted in the Baltic, the most striking one of which conveys with wonderful truth the effect of a lurid sky upon the sea rolling in on a flat shore.

          “On the south wall, there is beautifully harmonious picture in low tones, entitled, The Phantom Hunter. This canvas was one of the artist’s first successes at the Paris salon, and it is of particular interest to Hamilton people because of the fact that the snow background and landscape were painted up on the mountain side.

          “Of an entirely different character, and a picture which shows the artist’s versatility, is the Monologuist. This is a portrait of the celebrated Parisian artist and teacher, Lesar, and it conveys an idea of the difficulties in painting a portrait by lamplight.

          “Perhaps one of the most striking pictures in the collection is The Baltic in Winter, which was painted near the artist’s home on Gottland, off the coast of Sweden. This canvas is an admirable rendering of and ice-covered sea shore, with the open sea beyond. On this wall also is an expressive character study of Nelson, depicting England’s hero standing on the deck of the Victory in the twilight.

          “Probably the finest work in the room is to be seen on the west wall, where in the center, hangs a great picture called Bathers at Capri. This canvas, which has been lent to gallery by William Bruce, shows an excellence of coloring rarely achieved, and the artist has given a truly wonderful impression of the water on the skins of the two smaller figures. This picture secured the gold medal at the Pan-American exhibition in 1902.

          “Noticeable among other pictures on this side are portaits of the artist’s mother and grandmother. In these, particularly in the former, care is not taken in respect of completion, but they both give an admirable idea of the artist’s method of work..

          “Five or six pictures showing streamlets, running through broken country at Grez, in France, are also to be seen on this wall, and they are among the most delightful things in the exhibition. The Indian studies, too, are worthy of attention and are interesting to artist and layman alike.”¹

               While the works of William Blair Bruce were the focus of the Spectator reporter’s article, he also carefully detailed all the areas of the new Art Gallery of Hamilton, giving a full review of what was, in July, 1914, Hamilton’s newest cultural institution.