John McArthur, born in 1814 in Hamilton, Scotland, United Kingdom, and died on May 5, 1903, in Montreal, Canada, was a British-born Canadian artist, house and commercial painter and decorator, businessman, and merchant.
As a painter, John McArthur was primarily a landscape painter, a follower of the Barbizon School. He was also one of the first members of the Art Association of Montreal.
John McArthur was born in 1814 in Hamilton, Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom. After practicing his craft as a painter and house painter, notably in the cities of Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Belfast, he decided to emigrate to Montreal, Canada, in 1845. In 1846, he entered into partnership with Alexander Ramsay, a paint, oil, and varnish dealer, with whom he offered complementary services, including house painting, decorative painting, glazier, and upholsterer. During the 1850s, Ramsay and McArthur hired British glassmaker John C. Spence to offer stained glass and glass enameling services. Together, they notably oversaw the manufacturing of the glazing for the Notre-Dame-de-Grâce Church in Montreal in 1853. On December 1, 1854, the firm of Ramsay and McArthur was dissolved by mutual consent.
From 1855 to 1860, John McArthur continued to offer his services as a house & commercial painter and decorator and upholsterer. He opened a shop at "70 Grande rue Saint-Jacques" on May 1, 1856. In 1858, he designed the decoration of the Theatre Royal in Montreal. On May 12, 1860, he joined forces with his former glassmaker colleague John C. Spence. During the royal visit of Prince Edward of Wales in 1860, McArthur and Spence designed and decorated at least six of the temporary triumphal arches erected in the city of Montreal, the temporary ballroom building and the residence of the Honorable John Rose which was used as Prince Edward's temporary residence in Montreal.
Around 1862, John McArthur ended his partnership with John C. Spence, and decided to partner with his own son, John C. McArthur. In 1866, McArthur & Son painted the ceiling decorations of a store at the corner of St-Jaques and Place Victoria. In 1867, the firm painted the ceiling decorations of the Merchants' Bank building at Place d'Armes. In 1872, the firm may also have painted the ballroom of Ravenscrag in Montreal. In this regard, his paintings "beautified many Montreal residences." In 1882, he retired and his son took over the management of the firm and went into partnership with C. C. Corneille, under the name McArthur, Corneille & Co., until 1900. John McArthur died on May 5, 1903, in Montreal, Canada.
Throughout his career, John McArthur surrounded himself with artists to fulfill his various contracts. His presence in Montreal's artistic community allowed him to select talented artists. For example, he was one of the first members of the Art Association of Montreal.
Here is a non-exhaustive list of artists who worked with John McArthur:
As a painter, John McArthur was essentially a landscape painter, a follower of the Barbizon School. Moreover, during his retirement in the 1880s, he went to Barbizon and Cernay-la-Ville several times to meet other artists of this artistic movement and perfect his art. Canadian landscapes were the main subject of the paintings he exhibited during his life, but not only.
Below is a non-exhaustive list of exhibitions at which John McArthur or one of his firms exhibited works:
List of notorial acts in chronological order of publication: