William De Garthe, Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia Scenery, Circa 1950

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This artwork "Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia Scenery" c.1950 is a watercolor on paper by Finns/Canadian artist William Edward De Garthe, … Read more This artwork "Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia Scenery" c.1950 is a watercolor on paper by Finns/Canadian artist William Edward De Garthe, 1907-1983. It is signed at the lower left corner by the artist. The image size is 7.75 x 6 inches, sheet size is 9.35 x 8 inches. It is in excellent condition, has never been framed.

About the artist:

William Edward de Garthe was a painter, sculptor, illustrator, author, draftsman, printmaker, commercial artist, muralist and educator. He is probably best known for his paintings of marine scenes.

Born in Kasko (AKA: Kaskinen), Finland, a coastal village about 200 miles northwest of Helsinki, he emigrated to Canada in 1926 and died in Etobicoke (Toronto), Ontario. Although he lived in Montreal and elsewhere in Canada, he is most identified with Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia, a picturesque fishing village about 20 miles southwest of his home in Halifax. (1)

Throughout his long and diverse art career de Garthe worked in many mediums including charcoal, pen & ink, lithograph* and fresco*; however almost all of his original works in museum collections and sold at auction are oil paintings. His primary subjects were harbors, seascapes, landscapes, sailing ships, fishermen, figures, birds and genre*. His styles were Realism*, Post Impressionism* and Impressionism*. AskART has some good illustrations of his work. (2)

His formal art education includes studies at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts under Edmond Dyonnet (3); and at Mount Allison University, Sackville, New Brunswick (c.1945) under Stanley Royle. He also studied at the Art Students League*, New York City under George Grosz; at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière*, Paris; Académie Julian*, Paris; and at the Accademie di Belle Arti di Roma, Italy; as well as privately under Emile Gruppe (East Gloucester, Massachusetts) and Stanley Woodward (Rockport, Massachusetts). (4)

De Garthe taught at the Nova Scotia College of Art (now, Nova Scotia College of Art and Design). He was also an art instructor for the YMCA and YWCA in Halifax (and elsewhere in the city) and at outdoor summer painting classes at Peggy's Cove.

Before painting full time, he was the art director of an advertising firm in Halifax for 15 years and ran his own company "de Garthe Advertising Art" in Halifax for 10 years. He is also the author and illustrator of three books: This is Peggy's Cove Nova Scotia (1956), Painting the Sea (1969), and The Story of the Herring Gull: Larus Argentatus (1977). The first two have been reprinted several times. (5)

His numerous art association memberships include the Nova Scotia Society of Artists, the Nova Scotia Museum of Fine Arts, the Nova Scotia Arts Council, the Maritime Art Association, the International Institute of Arts and Letters, and the American Artists Professional League*. (6)

In addition to exhibiting with the above artist's organizations, his works have been exhibited at the Halifax Memorial Library [by the Nova Scotia Museum of Fine Arts] (1958) and at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Fredericton, New Brunswick (1959); as well as at other venues in Montreal, Toronto, the West Indies, London (England), and Florida. (7)

De Garthe's paintings are frequently traded on the Canadian auction market, they are in numerous private collections, and there are several in public collections.

According to the Canadian Heritage Information Network* and individual museum websites, there are William E. De Garthe works in the permanent collections of the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (Halifax), Dalhousie Art Gallery (Halifax), Owens Art Gallery (Sackville, N.B.), and the Public Archives Building (Halifax). (8)

The best known examples of his murals are those he completed in 1963 for St. John's Anglican Church, Peggy's Cove. (9)

De Garthe's Fisherman's Memorial sculpture is probably his single most famous work of art. The popular Nova Scotia landmark is carved on a 100 foot long granite out cropping in Peggy's Cove. It's discussed in most regional travel books such as Nova Scotia (2006) by Andrew Hempstead; Exploring Nova Scotia (2006) by Dale Dunlop and Alison Scott; and "Unforgettable Atlantic Canada - The 100 Must See Destinations and Events" (2010) by Harvey Sawler and George Fischer. The land the monument is located on used to be de Garthe's private property; it is now the William E. de Garthe Memorial Provincial Park. (10) See less