Cornell watercolours on display

Apparently, it’s the unseasonable January showers that bring May flowers. At least in Pointe Claire. Brilliant watercolours of flowers by Mary Cornell are on display at Stewart Hall until Jan. 27. A long-time member of the Lakeshore Association of Artists (LAA), 85-year-old Cornell was an avid gardener and has an intimate knowledge of flowers which is reflected in her art, according to Joyce Millar, director of Stewart Hall Art Gallery.

“Her paintings look very fresh,” Millar said. “You can almost see the dew on her petals.”

Best-known for her watercolours, Cornell also presented several collages to the LAA and taught watercolour and collage classes at Stewart Hall. She had worked there in its early days, first as art gallery assistant, and then taking over as interim director in 1980.

Ingeborg Hiscox, who co-directed with Cornell for three years, called her the ideal intermediary between the administration and artists.

“She was always serene, always well-spoken and always dressed elegantly,” Hiscox said “very much like her artwork: clean, beautiful and thoughtful.”

It was her husband, Dick Cornell, who first approached Stewart Hall late last year about doing a retrospective of her work. Although the gallery was booked for the following months, Millar was able to select 15 pieces to complement the works that were already on display, he said.

The Dec. 2 vernissage drew a large crowd, many of whom were devoted admirers. “Her involvement in the West Island art scene brought her such a great following,” Hiscox said, adding one art collector she spoke to already owned five Cornell pieces.

Cornell, however, was not able to attend as she is currently being cared for in the intensive care at the Jewish Hospital of Hope in Montreal.

“She would have been pleased to have Stewart Hall honouring her this way,” her husband said.