Winter Night

The city of Montreal was a favourite subject of Philip Surrey’s throughout his career, and Winter Night is a prime example. It features a typical winter scene with banks of freshly fallen snow, leafless trees, and rush-hour traffic. In the distance, Mount Royal rises up with quiet strength. The city is plunged into red, pink, and violet shadows, with soft peach- and cream-coloured lights, all rendered in Fauvist style. The angular silhouettes recall the bundled-up, anonymous figures of the painter Jean Paul Lemieux. In Winter Night, Surrey captures the essence of the city and suffuses it with intimacy and warmth.