Buildings, Craig St., Montreal, 1930 (circa)

Kathleen M. Morris is an important participant in the legacy of the Beaver Hall Group of artists Craig Street is a highly representative composition by her. The subject of Craig Street, now called St. Antoine Street, locates the composition just east of Victoria Square and within the closest proximity of Beaver Hall Hill. This composition, painted from an elevation above, describes the winter urban scene below, snow covered roof tops, and the windy street animated with a yellow tram turning the corner toward  a couple of  people and  a car heading one way while a horse drawn snow cart heads in the other direction. Morris describes her urban narrative with thick and aggressive brushwork in a warm palette of yellow, ochres, browns and blue and a contrast of cool whites of the snow. Her buildings are simplified forms and  boldly outlined , characteristic of the Beaver Hall group artists. The perspective is not uncommon for Morris and suggests that on this winter’s day she is painting from inside a building, sheltered from the cold.