Revisiting scenes around Montreal

Recently I dug through the archive and posted three paintings from various places around Montreal. I returned to those locations today by bicycle to see if the scenes were still there and if I could do a new painting around the same location. The downtown core can not be viewed anymore from this location, which is next to the canal just before the Peel basin, so I set up on the bike path looking east. In the distant background is the iconic Farine Five Roses maltage factory which I squeezed into the composition. As I painted, the commuter train went by on the upper bridge, then the VIA train went by on the lower bridge. The odd structure on the left was once some kind of bridge control building but now it lies derelict. It would make a fantastic spot for a cafe incidentally.

Two train bridges and bike path, watercolour 7.5 x 11" cold press, September 2023 (No. 1136b)

I did these on the b sides of the original paintings which I brought on location today. This one shows the Mission buildings which are still there after all these years. Other than the colour of the car in the foreground I could get the exact same scene as the one I did in 2016. Part of the fun of revisiting these scenes was to try and outdo myself. Looking back to the original one it seemed crude but still effective. In the new version I better described the complex arrangement of buildings, and captured the wide range of textures. The stone wall in the bottom left is one of those historical buildings you see all around Old Montreal. The new version is a lot warmer with a yellow-orange glow while the original version seems rather on the cool side. 

Mission Buildings, with red car, watercolour 7.5 x 11" cold press, September 2023 (No. 1143b)

 

Finally, after stopping at China Town to paint the gate again, I made it up to Mile End where I had made a painting of the auto shop with cathedral in the background in 2008. The scene was completely blocked by dense trees and a construction fence all around it. I located a small opening and could see that the auto shop was derelict and covered in graffiti. The hardest part of this painting was actually the roof which had repeating rows of pleats and a faded blue colour. The front was embellished with graffiti including my PJD 23 signature, and a slogan that I saw on the building that read 'space and time is doomed'. I'm not sure space and time are in any trouble, but this auto shop is surely doomed. A few things I learned about myself, were that I used to select very challenging scenes, and the paper I cut was seldom straight making the edges harder to manage. The paper absorbed a lot of colour probably because I used to remove the sizing with water and damp rag. These were tough scenes to recreate but I am glad I tried, it was a wonderful day for a bike ride at any rate.

Derelict Auto shop Mile End, watercolour 7.5 x 11" cold press., September 2023 (No. 1142b)