Lot 37
ALFRED JOSEPH CASSON, O.S.A., P.R.C.A.
Additional Images
Provenance:
Roberts Gallery Limited, Toronto
Private Collection, Ontario
Note:
Ablaze with gilded and amber hues, A.J. Casson’s Golden Valley is warm and compelling. In restricting his palette, Casson seems to come to a perfect balance: “...I took lessons from Harry Britton (Lot 22) and he taught me that if you go out up north on a gray day you don’t load up your palette with cadmium orange, brilliant yellows and that sort of thing. If you do, you’re going to waste so much time dirtying them. You use yellow ochre. The only thing is, if you have a good thing working, you have to be careful not to overdo it.” Though the day is far from a gray one, Casson plies the yellow ochre to a calming affect. By subtly adding a hint of the pigment to the blue of the sky, Casson toasts the scene with a tinge of autumnal comfort. His love-affair with landscapes – and his remarkable ability to capture their seasonal variability – clearly informed his work for the duration of Casson’s career.