Emily Carr 1871 - 1945

Mrs. Buchan (acquired from the artist by her sister)

Mr. & Mrs. Featherstone, Victoria

Private Collection, London, England

Carr's sketchbook from St. Ives in 1901-2, while she was spending four and a half years in England, includes a drawing, Little Girl with Doll, in which an articulated wooden doll is featured. This painting of the same doll, in a tight vertical format, foreshadows the totem subjects with which Carr was already familiar (she had been given the name Klee Wyck in Ucluelet in 1899) and which would completely absorb her upon her return to British Columbia after her trip to France in 1911.

The possibility exists, however, that this is a fragment rescued from a larger painting that was abandoned, as the slightly irregular left edge could indicate. Nevertheless, the image itself is a strong, well-painted work, and well worth saving. The colours are bold, the handling of paint is deft and mature, and even in this stretched format the composition is intelligently arranged.