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William C. GrauerWILLIAM C GRAUER 1930s Fishing Village, Gaspé Coast, Québec Cleveland School WCCirca 1930s
Circa 1930s
$3,700
£2,811.09
€3,230.53
CA$5,197.10
A$5,656.92
CHF 2,997.40
MX$68,032.98
NOK 38,111.15
SEK 34,924.65
DKK 24,131.85
About the Item
William C. Grauer’s watercolor A Fishing Village Along the Gaspé Coast (c. 1930s) presents a quiet yet enduring image of maritime life on the Gaspé Peninsula, a rugged stretch of coastline in eastern Québec, Canada, where the St. Lawrence River widens and meets the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The painting shows a cluster of weathered wooden houses pressed against the shoreline, with low rocky hills rising behind them and a band of gray water in the foreground. Three fishermen stand at the water’s edge, hauling a small boat through the shallows. The scene feels unposed and habitual, like a moment observed in the rhythm of an ordinary workday.
The composition emphasizes the tight bond between land and sea. In front, the water is rendered in layered washes of gray and green that suggest ripples, reflections, and the chill of the North Atlantic influenced waters. Three workboats rest on this surface, their simple, sturdy forms underlining the community’s dependence on fishing. The fishermen’s bodies lean into their task, their bent postures conveying effort rather than heroism. They appear as part of the landscape and its daily routines rather than separate from it.
Behind them, the village rises in a progression of rectilinear shapes. The nearest house, with its deep porch and central chimney, anchors the scene and provides a sense of shelter. To the right, a series of sheds and outbuildings extend along the shore. Against these structures lie stacks of traditional wooden lobster traps, their repeating slats and curved tops introducing a distinct textural rhythm. The traps signal that this is not only a general fishing community but also a place where lobstering is central to survival. They serve as quiet evidence of preparation and hard seasonal labor, waiting to be loaded onto the boats in the foreground.
Grauer’s palette is deliberately muted. Grays, browns, and subdued blues dominate, with only small touches of warmer tones in the roofs and clapboards. This limited color range suits the cool, often overcast light characteristic of the Gaspé coast, where fog, wind, and cloud frequently soften the landscape. It also places emphasis on structure, line, and atmosphere rather than on dramatic color effects. The distant houses on the hillside are left in softer, sketchlike tones, almost dissolving into the mist, which creates depth and conveys the sense of a settlement gradually climbing away from the water.
As an artwork of the 1930s, the watercolor fits within a broader interest in regional subjects and working communities in North America. Grauer highlights the realities of a modest fishing village on this remote Canadian peninsula: weathered siding, patched roofs, piles of traps and gear, and the constant negotiation with tide and shoreline. Yet there is a quiet dignity in his treatment. The repetition of gables, the gentle curve of the bay, and the orderly placement of boats and traps all give the image a measured stability. This is a place familiar with hardship, but also with persistence and cooperation.
A Fishing Village Along the Gaspé Coast ultimately becomes more than a topographical record of a Québec shoreline. Through careful composition, restrained color, and telling details like the wooden lobster traps beside the houses, Grauer offers a respectful portrait of a coastal community whose life is shaped by the cold, expansive waters of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The painting invites viewers to consider the endurance, routine, and understated beauty that define such working villages along Canada’s eastern seaboard.
Signed lower right.
Framed Dimensions: 24 x 29.5 inches
PROVENANCE: The Artist, Cleveland, Ohio;
Acquired from the above over a 50 year period by a relative of the artist, Rancho Santa Fe, California.
- Creator:William C. Grauer (1896, American)
- Creation Year:Circa 1930s
- Dimensions:Height: 14 in (35.56 cm)Width: 19 in (48.26 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement Style:
- Period:
- Condition:In very fine, age appropriate condition.
- Gallery Location:Rancho Santa Fe, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU516317267652
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