Name/Title
Old Victoria, James BayEntry/Object ID
2024.12.08Description
Painting
This cityscape depicts the James Bay neighbourhood of Victoria with the B.C. Parliament Buildings in the background. The street shown is Toronto Street. James Bay boasts a rich history that has shaped its character and is unique in its appearance, built and inhabited by working class people from various professions, government officials to artisans.
The painting depicts a number of houses to the left and middle ground, mostly wood-clad from the mid 1800s to the early 1900s and edged with picket fences. In the grassy foreground next to a garden is a cat watching a man walking down Toronto Street. He is wearing a suit with a shoulder-carrying pole with a large container of plants suspended from each end. The artist has not only successfully captured details of the buildings and the view, but he also has conveyed a warm historic charm.Artwork Details
Medium
Watercolour on paperSubject Place
Region
Pacific NorthwestContinent
North AmericaContext
James Bay is named after James Douglas, the second Governor of Vancouver Island and the first Governor of British Columbia. It is the oldest residential neighbourhood on the west coast of North America north of San Francisco. Bordering Victoria’s Inner Harbour, James Bay is within easy walking distance to Victoria’s Downtown. The neighbourhood is surrounded by water and parks with the Victoria Harbour to the north and west, the Strait of Juan de Fuca to the south, and the historic 200-acre Beacon Hill Park to the east.
The original inhabitants of James Bay were the Swenghwung people who were part of the Lekwungen people of the Coast Salish and whose descendants today are known as the Songhees First Nation. Residential development of James Bay began in 1859 when Governor Douglas decided to construct the colonial administration offices for the Colony of Vancouver Island across the harbour from Fort Victoria.
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The Edwardian Queen Ann house depicted (in part) in the painting to the left with the turret is 589 Toronto Street, known as Mulholland House, ca. 1903, at Heather St. The house is ex-28 Birdcage Walk, renumbered 623 Government St. in 1907, and was moved to 290 Government St. ca.1909, and thereafter to 589 Toronto St. in 1927 next to the James Bay Inn at 255 Government St. that opened in 1911 (not depicted).Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Michael KlucknerRole
ArtistDate made
1985Time Period
20th CenturyNotes
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Born in Vancouver, B.C., Michael Kluckner is an award-winning artist, illustrator, author and urban critic. As an illustrator and artist he works in different media such as oil on canvas, ink on paper, woodcut prints and watercolour on paper.
Kluckner grew up in western Canada and is self-taught as a writer and artist, saying that he learned to draw by reading Mad magazine and copying the work of the American cartoonist Mort Drucker (1929-2020). He audited open courses in architecture and art history at UBC intending to become an architect; however, he graduated with a degree in mathematics. He worked for alternative newspapers and as a newspaper cartoonist and commercial artist before commencing his long career writing and illustrating books. He is the author of over 20 books and graphic novels, many of them dealing with the heritage, neighbourhoods and changing face of Vancouver. He often combines an historical narrative with his own watercolors and diverse collections of photographs and vintage postcards. He has also written about and drawn/painted the countryside and small communities across B.C. documenting the buildings and local histories of various communities and their roles in the development of the province.
In 1991 Kluckner was the founding president of the Heritage Vancouver Society. From 1996 until 2001, he was the British Columbia member of the board of governors of the Heritage Canada Foundation, and served as chair from 1998 to 2000. Michael chaired the Vancouver Heritage Foundation in 2002-3. He received the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal in 2002 for the contributions made, through books and volunteer efforts, to increasing awareness of Canada's heritage and culture. He has won numerous awards, including the Duthie Prize, the Vancouver Book Prize, the Toronto Book Prize (short list), the Hallmark Society (Victoria) Award of Merit, and the Heritage Canada Medal of Achievement.
Kluckner lived on a farm in rural Langley, B.C. from 1993 to 2006, and then in Australia, returning to Canada in 2010 to live in Vancouver.Inscription/Signature/Marks
Type
Date, SignatureLocation
Signed and date lower right: M. Kluckner 1985Dimensions
Dimension Description
VisibleHeight
31.4 cmWidth
47 cmAcquisition
Acquisition Method
PurchaseDate
Sep 10, 2024Notes
Lunds Lot #219Copyright
Notes
Images are provided for research and reference use only. Permission to publish, copy, or otherwise use these images must be obtained from the copyright holder. It is the sole responsibility of the applicant to determine the copyright holder and to obtain permission(s) as needed.
