Lot 2: Edward John (E.J.) Hughes 1913 - 2007 Canadian

Edward John (E.J.) Hughes 1913 - 2007 Canadian watercolour on paper Low Tide at Roberts Bay 20 x 24 inches 50.8 x 61 centimeters signed and dated 2006 and on verso signed, titled and dated Provenance:Acquired directly from the Artist by the present Private Collection, Vancouver After 1991, E.J. Hughes no longer painted canvases and turned his full attention to watercolour, a medium he used throughout his oeuvre. He would sometimes revisit earlier subjects painted in oil, as he did in this stunning watercolour based on a 1953 canvas entitled Roberts Bay, BC. The watercolour and the oil are virtually identical, except that Hughes has intensified some of the colours and eliminated the small pile of rocks on the left of the foreground boat in the watercolour. Hughes's strong images from the 1950s and 1960s of British Columbia coastal scenes are highly valued. This image pivots on the four boats marooned onshore, the central one pulled up against a huge log. Highly colourful and unique in shape, they reflect the intensity of observation and deliberation in execution that is the mark of Hughes's best work. Hughes emphasizes the angles they make against each other, tilting as if bobbing on the sea. The nearby ocean and screen of trees provides a serene backdrop to this superb West Coast scene.