Looking Towards Montreal, 1883 (August 15)
27.9 x 41.9 cm
Inscriptions
signed and dated, ‘W.R. 15.8.83.’ (lower left)Provenance
Galerie Walter Klinkhoff Inc., Montreal
Private collection, Montreal
Raphael’s view is likely from what, at the time, was the east side of Île Ste. Hélène, looking towards the west. In the background is the dome of Bonsecours Market, and to its right (east) the steeple of Notre Dame de Bon Secours Chapel. The tall smokestack further to the right could be one seen in period renderings and associated with the newly acquired Canadian Pacific Railway facilities at Dalhousie Square, two blocks east of Bonsecours. On the river, there is a rowboat closer to the foreground, and a white side-wheeler and steamship further in the distance, furthering the contrast between bucolic and urban.

Detail of William Raphael’s Looking Towards Montreal, 1883.

Detail of 1888 pictorial map of the City of Montreal by A.W. Morris & Bro.
The shore in the middleground, on the right, is probably Île Ronde which at the time was separated from Île Ste. Hélène by a channel. This would have given Raphael a viewpoint similar to this. Île Ronde was absorbed into Île Ste. Hélène when the latter was enlarged during preparations for Expo 67.

Aerial view of Île Ronde in 1964 while it is in the process of being subsumed in the expansion of Île Ste. Hélène. The arrow depicts our estimation of Raphael’s approximate view point in 1883. (Archives de Montreal)
One should be reminded that in the 1880s, Montreal was the business centre for Canada. This underlines the importance of industrialization in the city at the time including, manufacturing, building of factories, deepening of the waterway between Montreal and Quebec City, increased use of steam engines, and extension of the railway, all combining to pave the path toward a new and modern era. The impact of these developments was to spread nationwide.
William Raphael (1833-1914) was one of the foremost artists of the last half of the 19th century active in Canada. Raphael was born in Prussia to parents who were Orthodox Jews of Polish descent. According to original research by Sharon Goelman for Galerie Walter Klinkhoff in 1996, William Raphael arrived in Montreal via New York City on April 23,1857. Raphael was the first artist of the Jewish faith to establish himself in Canada. Works of art by Raphael are represented in Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, the National Gallery of Canada, the McCord Stewart Museum, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and the Vancouver Art Gallery.
The Art Canada Institute has recently announced the publication of the online book William Raphael: Life & Work with a release date of November 2025. Researched and written by Pierre-Olivier Ouellet PhD, as a trailer, he has written:
"For Raphael to contribute so profoundly to the visual folklore of Quebec, receiving accolades for his representations of rural life and the modern urban reality, is no small feat. [...] [William Raphael] was one of the first members of the Royal Academy of Art in 1880. His unparalleled contributions to the visual folklore of Quebec have strengthened our understanding of nineteenth-century Canada.”