Subseries

This subseries contains correspondence between Clarence A. Gagnon and Duncan Campbell Scott, a Canadian author, poet and civil servant. There are 32 letters in all, 4 of which were written by Scott. Among Gagnon's 28 letters, 27 are handwritten and have a typed transcription. This relatively regular correspondence between the two men, who socialized together with their wives, illustrates their personal and professional connections. It primarily chronicles the activities and extensive travels of Gagnon and his wife Lucile on both sides of the Atlantic.

Up until November 9, 1924, Gagnon's letters recounted his comings and goings between Île d'Orléans, where he and his wife would visit their friend Horatio Walker; Ottawa, where Gagnon was on the jury to select the works to be presented during the British Empire Exhibition held in Wembley (1924); and Baie-Saint-Paul, where the couple made their home. His letters from Baie-Saint-Paul reflect his interest in its inhabitants’ traditional way of life, as well as his love of painting, skiing and gardening. The correspondence also records the artist’s trips to Montreal and reveals that Gagnon and his brother entered the competition for the design of a battlefield memorial in France, which they did not win. In addition, it chronicles the exhibitions he participated in, including those of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts in Toronto and the Salmagundi Club in New York.

From December 1924 to June 1936, the correspondence between the two men documents Gagnon's stay in Europe with his wife. Gagnon went to Paris first, to avoid losing his unoccupied studio. While letters from this period offer a few observations from the artist about his life in Paris, French politics and the country's economic situation, Gagnon primarily discusses the evolution of his work as he tries to complete the illustrations for the novels Le grand silence blanc, by Louis-Frédéric Rouquette, and Maria Chapdelaine, by Louis Hémon. The correspondence also recounts the artist's visits to various regions of Europe, particularly Norway and Sweden. Beginning in 1938, Gagnon's letters chronicle his return to Canada, where he starts drawing up his plans for an open-air museum on Île d'Orléans, deals with issues regarding the estate of his friend Horatio Walker, who died on September 27, 1938, helps relaunch the Art Association of Montreal art school, and prepares the exhibition of his original illustrations for Maria Chapdelaine.

This subseries provides brief information about the early artistic career of painter and trapper René Richard. To a lesser degree, it documents trips taken by Scott and his wife in Canada and Europe.