File

This file contains sympathy notes sent to Lucile Gagnon following her husband's death. It is composed of letters, cards and telegrams of condolence.

The file includes testimonials from numerous public personalities, such as a telegram from Henri Groulx, the Minister of National Health and Welfare, and letters from Montreal Mayor Adhémar Raynault, leader of the council of Montreal A. E. Goyette, Université de Montréal rector Olivier Maurault, President of the Province of Quebec Association of Architects John Roxburgh Smith, and archivist and historian Gustave Lanctôt. Louisa H. Currie, president of the Quebec Branch of the Canadian Handicrafts Guild, noted the artist's "generous co-operation and support." Biologist Vadim Vladykov remembered Gagnon as a "world-class naturalist and ardent fisherman." There are also letters from Jean-Paul Héroux and Léon Trépanier of the Montreal Tercentenary Commission; Gagnon had chaired the organization's Fine Arts section.

In addition, many members of the art world sent their sympathies to the painter's widow, including artists Kathleen Morris and Edwin Holgate, along with Edmond Dyonnet, who wrote on behalf of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. There are letters from the Anciens des beaux-arts de Montréal, Martin Baldwin, curator of the Art Gallery of Toronto (today the Art Gallery of Ontario), and an excerpt of a letter from Robert W. Pilot. A letter from Frank P. Wood mentions a recent discussion with John M. Lyle about the possibility of organizing an exhibition of Gagnon's works later that year.

Many messages underscore the artist's talent and the tremendous esteem in which he was held. For example, Louis Joseph Adjutor Amyot writes that "people across Canada had the greatest admiration for his extraordinary talent and beautiful character," while John M. Lyle, president of the Art Gallery of Toronto, recalls the extent of his renown.

Close friends express a more personal and profound sadness. Some correspondents also recall happy memories. Gilbert Wilson, writing from the Imperial College of London, and Maud Brown, probably the wife of Eric Brown, the former director of the National Gallery of Canada, both reminisce about good times with the couple in Paris, while artist Edward Boyd and his wife Marguerite hold precious memories of their visits to Baie St. Paul. Several correspondents, pointing out how close the couple was, exhibit even more sympathy towards the artist's widow.