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Volume 2, Number 3, May-June 2006 
The Peter Winkworth Collection of Canadiana:
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Well into the 19th century, the landscape, events and everyday lives of the people who shaped our country were captured by artists of the times; their works provide a valuable visual record of Canada's history. The late Peter Winkworth was a passionate collector of this Canadiana throughout his lifetime. Born in Montréal in 1929 and eventually becoming a British resident, he searched throughout Canada, the United States and Europe for over five decades to amass a huge collection.
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In 2002, with the assistance of funds from the Government of Canada, Library and Archives Canada acquired more than 3,300 prints, 700 watercolours and drawings, and over 100 maps and paintings from Mr. Winkworth's collection of Canadiana. This acquisition is one of the largest ever made by the Government of Canada; it is certainly the largest single purchase ever undertaken on behalf of Library and Archives Canada. These remarkable works can now be shared with all Canadians.
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The Peter Winkworth Collection of Canadiana: Early Impressions of Quebec, one of a series of five regional exhibitions travelling across the country, opens May 16, 2006, at Library and Archives Canada, in Ottawa. A must-see exhibition, it includes 66 exceptional oil paintings, watercolours, lithographs and etchings from the Winkworth collection relating to the history of Quebec, as well as a selection of paintings, rare books and other documents chosen from the permanent holdings of Library and Archives Canada.
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Early Impressions of Quebec is divided into three thematic sections: Conflict and Commerce explores the social, religious, territorial and commercial conflicts that arose among the various groups, and shows some of the economic and industrial developments of the 16th century and onwards. Among the most interesting works are James Pattison Cockburn's watercolour, Lower marketplace, from McCallum's Wharf, Québec, July 4, 1829 (fig. 1) showing the city's busy harbour, with numerous wharfs and warehouses; and one of the most beautiful works from the collection by Frances Anne Hopkins, The timber raft, ca. 1868 (fig. 2).
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New Lands, New Peoples presents views of Quebec's physical and natural landscape, and highlights scenes depicting the lives of our country's Indigenous peoples. Of particular note are works such as the print The Iroquois Catherine Tegahkouita, taken from a 1781 Paris publication (fig. 3); and J.G. Hochstetter's, The Falls of Montmorenci, 1793--one of the earliest pictorial engravings produced in Canada (fig. 4).
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Life and Leisure illustrates the changes in Quebec's population and politics, its commercial and industrial prosperity, the establishment of educational and artistic institutions, and the advent of leisure time, pastimes and recreation. Featured in this section are such works as James Peachey's A view of Quebec Taken from the Ferry House on the Opposite Side of the River St. Lawrence, 1784 (fig. 5); Octave Henri Julien's drawing of Returning from mass, done in 1888 (fig. 6); and Alicia Killaly's A tenting party, ca. 1860 (fig. 7)--a watercolour depicting summer's leisure moments in which the participants enjoy a tranquil escape from the routine and formality of daily life.
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The Peter Winkworth Collection of Canadiana: Early Impressions of Quebec runs until September 5, 2006, and is open every day free of charge, from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., in Exhibition Room C, at Library and Archives Canada, 395 Wellington Street, in Ottawa.
A virtual exhibition highlighting pieces from the Peter Winkworth Collection is also available for viewing online at www.collectionscanada.ca/art/index-e.html.