John Little

John Little was a Canadian painter celebrated for his vibrant urban scenes of Montréal, which capture the city’s streets, row houses, and neighborhoods with both architectural precision and emotional warmth. Born in Montréal, he studied at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts’ School of Art and Design and briefly at Yale University.  After the war, he joined his family’s architectural firm Luke & Little, where his training in draftsmanship sharpened his eye for structure and perspective—qualities that would define his painting style. By the 1950s, he had committed to painting full time, establishing himself with depictions of Montréal’s working-class districts in winter light and shifting weather.

Over the following decades, Little became known as a chronicler of Montréal’s changing cityscape, painting both the intimate rhythms of everyday life and the larger transformations of urban renewal. His canvases often juxtapose historic buildings and bustling street scenes, preserving the texture of neighborhoods that were disappearing under modernization. His works are held in collections across Canada, including the National Gallery of Canada and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and are prized for their ability to merge nostalgia, history, and a deep affection for the character of Montréal.