The Vancouver Art Gallery (VAG) is hosting, French Modernism, Monet to Matisse. Also offered for your viewing pleasure is the complementary collection, Affinities, Canadian Artists in France. The collection looks at French influences found in Canadian works. Above is Untitled (Tree on a Rocky Profile), 1922-25 by one of Canada's most well-known and loved artists, Emily Carr 1871-1945.

The work to the left is by Clarence Gagnon (1881 - 1942). Spring Thaw, A Quebec Village (1934) couldn't get more Canadian. I loved the high contrast of this piece and was surely reminded of my childhood in Manitoba. I worry for those houses close to the river's edge. Waters will be rising and much of this picturesque village likely lost to the flow.

Even more identifiable to this prairie girl is the work of Marc-Aurèle de Foy Suzor-Côté (1869 - 1937). Une Rue à Trois Rivières (1918) could double for any suburban street coast-to-coast. Imagine waking up to this on Xmas morning or it being your job to shovel it. Beautiful to look at, but moving about in ... maybe not so much. The work itself has amazing texture and contrast. Well-worth a look-see.

I'd have left you with Group of Seven's A.Y. Jackson (1882-1974) but his work is protected by copyright. North Shore, Lake Superior is a fabulous painting of lines, contrast, and impression. It absolutely transports you there. Check it out online, or better yet, take a trip to Vancouver and visit VAG.

#Marketfriday is curated by the incomparable @dswigle and so I will offer flowers instead. Below is a shot of Beaver Lake in Stanley Park. To my mind, it is reminiscent​ of Monet and there is​​ the hook. So reel it in. That is, scroll.