The Old Empress of Japan Figurehead, Stanley Park, 1939, a linocut by E.J. Hughes, Collection of the Vancouver Art Gallery. Another work from the exhibition An Autobiography of Our Collection, one of the 80 Artworks at 80, selected on September 28, 2011 by Zoe Grams. Zoe writes:
Vancouver, for me, has always meant Stanley Park. Not the Stanley Park of summer, when the seawall tingles with brightly-dressed tourists and families, but the Stanley Park of Autumn, when the air is sharp and the trees start to bare. E.J. Hughes’ linocut conjures both a peace and nostalgia that I have always received during my frequent visits to the park since moving to Canada. There’s the curvy, friendly-looking benches in the forefront, and the muted, soft greens and beiges felt on a cold day. And then the bright, stunning punch of the Figurehead as you round the corner, just like when you spot something special on the sea’s horizon, or come upon a statue you forgot was there.
A BC-resident, E.J. Hughes’ work is saturated with symbols of the West Coast and Canadian culture. There is a great feeling of pride and beauty; his linocut feels like a celebration of the province’s atmosphere, its quiet strength. It is also a very accurate depiction of my favourite days in a city that I only recently started to call home.
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From Jacques Barbeau’s book A Journey with E.J. Hughes
Near Second Beach, one of only four linocuts, was produced by E.J. Hughes in 1936. It is an elegant rendering of this secluded beach, with which I became familiar less than a decade later. E.J. aptly contained the intimacy of this seashore enclave. Less ebullient than its counterpart, Bridges on Beaver Creek, the linocut Second Beach captures a particularly refined bit of seashore. The mood is tranquil and serene. Yet it illustrates Hughes’ subtle ability to suggest less to achieve more. He undermines the obvious to generate a distinctive aesthetic atmosphere. He sidetracks an immediate impact to compel a more careful look that delivers the “goods.”
