We are pleased to announce a rare E.J. Hughes Gabriola Island, Pilot Bay, 1950 is now available for private sale. Hughes first visited Gabriola Island in 1948 funded by the Emily Carr Scholarship (which Lawren Harris recommended him for). Inspired by the rich coastal scenery, he produced a series of masterful studio drawings in graphite of the region.

Hughes referred to these drawings as ‘cartoons’. Executed with a soft pencil on Hi-Art illustration board (a thin sheet of cartridge paper mounted on cardboard for stability). With a refined composition and tonal structure, Gabriola Island, Pilot Bay shows Hughes’s precision and control. Though created as preparatory studies, these drawings are considered complete works of art and highly sought after. Very few were made after 1959, making this 1950 example significant.

In 1951 Hughes was taken on by Montreal dealer Max Stern, who became his primary representative and acquired much of his available work. This drawing bears Stern’s Dominion Gallery label and inventory number C6568 on the reverse, confirming its provenance. It has remained with the same family since it’s original sale though the Dominion Gallery.