Provenance

Douglas Duncan, Toronto, 1953
Estate of the Artist
Private Collection
Mira Godard Gallery, Toronto
Private Collection
Masters Gallery, Calgary, 2004
Private Collection, Calgary

Literature

“David Milne: A Survey Exhibition”, Toronto, 1978, no. 35 as “Stormy October, Gull River”
David Milne Jr. and David P. Silcox, “David B. Milne: Catalogue Raisonné of the Paintings, Volume 2: 1929-1953”, Toronto, 1998, listed and reproduced page 876 as no. 405.77 “Tree by the River (Stormy October: Gull River)”

Exhibited

“David Milne: A Survey Exhibition”, Mira Godard Gallery, Toronto, 4-28 November 1978, no. 35 as Stormy October, Gull River
“David Milne Retrospective Exhibition”, Galerie Walter Klinkhoff, Montreal, 15-29 September 2001, no. 57

The landmark Armory Show of 1913 marked the official arrival of modernism in North America; five of David Milne’s works were included in the exhibition alongside Europe’s latest and best artists. The period following the Armory Show was a productive time for Milne; he painted interior scenes, street scenes and broader landscape views, alternating between opaque paint application and loose washes with areas of exposed paper or canvas. During these years Milne developed an original and distinctive watercolour style that he would carry with him throughout his career.

“Tree by the River (Stormy October: Gull River)” presents a landscape with the artist’s characteristic loose paint application in a monochromatic palette of earth tones. The work demonstrates how Milne’s approach has evolved into much looser brushstrokes but has also stayed consistent in the paint application in the use of negative space.