Another View

Sidney Allinson is a Victoria-based communications consultant, Canadian
news correspondent for Britain’s The Army Quarterly and Defence, and
author of The Bantams: The Untold Story of World War I.

Many other views, in fact. One of the hazards of opening a book about a
city where one lives is the expectation of ennui. How can there be
anything new to perceive in everyday surroundings? Yet artist Robert
Amos has succeeded in bringing a fresh outlook to Victoria vistas
through the 80 watercolor paintings reproduced in this book. Although
most have a misty look, some are firm and almost photographic. Amos’s
mastery of the style could be usefully studied by would-be
watercolorists, as could his choice of subject. He has a particular
interest in what might be called the architecture of commerce. Many of
his subjects are, at first blush, prosaic (store fronts, restaurants,
and ordinary street scenes); then one’s eye begins to roam the frame
and pick up on the detail of human activities.

Though he does cover some beauty spots, Amos makes no attempt to
romanticize present-day Victoria; cars and power lines are depicted as
he finds them. The artist’s personal commentary on the scenes he
illustrates increases one’s inclination to study each picture in more
detail.