Major Themes - Fabulous Western Canada: Capture the Excitement of the Great West! - page 268

Visual Arts

At the beginning of the 20th century,
Emily Carr, who had travelled exten-
sively throughout British Columbia,
produced magnifi cently beautiful paint-
ings refl ecting the splendid landscapes
of the Pacifi c coast and revealing certain
aspects of Aboriginal spirituality. Her
blues and greens portray the captivat-
ing atmosphere of British Columbia.

Several rooms at the Vancouver Art
Gallery are devoted exclusively to her
work. A pioneer of the West Coast art
scene, she was followed by such great
artists as Jack Shadbolt and Gordon
Smith, whose work illustrates the
unique vision that all inhabitants of this
region have of the landscapes that sur-
round them.

6

A magnifi cent painting by Emily Carr. © Emily Carr, Above the Gravel Pit , 1937, oil on canvas, Vancouver Art Gallery Collection,
Emily Carr Trust, VAG 42.3.30. Photo: Trevor Mills