E.J. Hughes: Life At The Lake

 E.J. HUGHES: LIFE AT THE LAKE is the most recent of an engaging series of books about the art and life of the beloved Canadian “folk realist” painter. Victoria-based Robert Amos again brings thorough research and his accessible writing style to the telling of Hughes’ story, the focus of this modest publication being the years Hughes spent living and working in a drafty and unplumbed old house on Vancouver Island’s Shawnigan Lake. With reproductions of paintings, drawings, letters, photographs and newspaper clippings, the book follows the artist through years of poverty and isolation to eventual recognition and success. It also details Hughes’ close relationships with his Montreal art dealer Max Stern, his attentive neighbour Pat Salmon and his beloved wife, Fern. Published by TouchWood Editions.