signed, titled & dated
Provenance: Galerie Walter Klinkhoff, Montreal, QC (label verso)
Born in Montreal, Little received his early training under Arthur Lismer and Goodridge Roberts at the Art Association of Montreal (now the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts), and at the Art Students’ League in New York. After returning to Montreal, Little worked as a draughtsman for his father’s architectural firm and as an illustrator before dedicating himself to painting full-time. In 1953. Little’s early characterizations of Montreal, Quebec City, and the surrounding countryside caught the attention of a well-respected art dealer, William Watson, who offered Little his first show at Watson Art Galleries. Many exhibitions at numerous galleries followed over his long career.
Little’s interest in architecture, and in the changing face of Quebec’s historical buildings and neighbourhoods, particularly in Montreal and Quebec City, would guide his work for the next six decades. Little’s work received critical acclaim and became highly sought after, not only because of his artistic abilities, but for his vision, and dedication to the preservation of the urban core. Lauding his exhibition in a Gazette article in 1964, Dorothy Pfeiffer observed:
“Those bemoaning the seemingly ruthless demolition of hundreds of Montreal’s gracious old-world homes and other buildings, the disappearance in the name of progress of various little private nooks and parks, and the often callous disposal of dignified stone pillars and amusing cornices will gain nostalgic pleasure from John Little’s show, for he has dedicated his painting to the preservation of such items for posterity. Yet so spirited and relaxed is his painting technique, that his work can in no manner today be labeled as merely documentary.”
