A.Y. JACKSON IN THE B.C. INTERIOR

The sketch of Mount Paul was recently acquired by the Gallery. Mounts Peter and Paul dominate Kamloops and are situated to the immediate north-east of the city. This particular view, from the western slopes above Kamloops, is titled Mount Paul and the panel also bears the inscription "September, 1945" in the artist's hand.

The three sketches bequeathed by Mr. J.E. Fitzwater to the future Kamloops Art Gallery were works that were probably acquired by the Fitzwaters in the fall of 1946, at the time of the artist's visit to the city after a sketching trip in the Cariboo region.

Jackson often responded to the invitations from his students to visit their part of the country. His visits to Kamloops and the Cariboo region of B.C. in 1944, 1945, 1946, 1947 and 1949 are documented. Two graphite sketches of the Cariboo area in the National Gallery's collection are dated 1950 and would indicate another stay that year. Jackson's own autobiography mentions that he stayed with Mr. and Mrs. George Williams. Mr. Williams had been Mayor of Kamloops from 1942-45.

There are two other sketches by A.Y. Jackson in the collection of the Kamloops Art Gallery. These are a 1924 sketch of Five Mile Glacier, Mt. Robson, purchased in 1995, and an early 1914 sketch of Moose Lake, Mile 25, BC purchased in 1994.

Jackson's earlier sketching trips in the interior of British Columbia occurred in the summer of 1914 when he and J.W. Beatty were commissioned to paint in the construction camps of the Canadian Northern Railway. Jackson later destroyed many of these sketches.

The Gallery has, however, just received the gift of another sketch from this first B.C. sketching trip from Mr. E.F. Anthony Merchant. The sketch entitled South of Razor Mountain is a most welcome addition to our small collection of works by A. Y. Jackson.

Jackson's second trip to the Rockies occurred in 1924 in the company of Lawren Harris. They did some work near Maligne Lake, although Jackson seemed to be dissatisfied with the work he did in the mountains and destroyed many of his sketches. The 1924 sketch of Mount Robson by Jackson indicates that Harris and Jackson would have visited B.C. as Mount Robson is a few miles west of the border between Alberta and British Columbia.

Jackson also visited British Columbia in the company of Edwin Holgate during the summer of 1926. The two artists sketched along the Skeena River, visiting a number of Indian villages along the way. They worked at Kitwanga, Gitsegyukla, Hazelton, Kispiox, Hagwelget and Port Essington.

Yet another work now at the Kamloops Art Gallery as an intended gift of Mr. Hugh Hanson Davidson is the very vigorous sketch of Quebec in March from 1922. This terrific little picture extends the context of our collection to the kind of landscape most associated with the name of A.Y. Jackson.

RHB