To start the year 2021 your Magazin’Art hasn’t spared any efforts to fulfill your expectations towards visual arts. From monumental sculptures defying cosmic and terrestrial forces, from abstraction that weaves between reality and paradox, then from a painting style that rocks the spectator to another spellbinding as a waking dream, while otherwise highlighting the freedom of painting on site, of establishing links between human faces and animals, and finally crowning a 60 year career with a return to the colours of the Renaissance, such is composed this exceptional issue. We should also note that the Sur le radar section features 10 artists from the MRC Chaudière-Appalaches and, in line with our desire to allow for artists’ voices to be heard, 3 creators testify to their creative experience during a time of pandemic. We thank you for your readership and wish you Good reading! MB
To start the year 2021 your Magazin’Art hasn’t spared…
Great Encounter
Françoise Pascals claims having inherited this taste for beauty and aesthetics from her father who was an architect and sculptor. “My childhood has been rocked by love of beauty. I grew up surrounded with books which I pored over for hours admiring the artworks of painters and sculptors of all eras. My eye was invariably attracted to the mastery of technique and colours of the great masters of the Renaissance. After reading many books, I was hooked; I had chosen my future career”, says the artist. While she choose an artistic career at 14 years of age, she is still active sixty years later for our greatest pleasure. A must!
by Alexandre D’Astous
Galerie Vigneault and the Internet
Françoise Pascals paintings are exhibited at Galerie d’art Vigneault in Repentigny, as well as on her website (fpascals.com). “The world of art and that of galleries have changed over the years. Everything seems to look the same nowadays and I find that sad.” Françoise Pascals’ works can be found in Québec, British Columbia, the United States and in Belgium where her love for renaissance painters is appreciated.
Françoise Pascals claims having inherited this taste for beauty and aesthetics…
A Wink from a Painter
“One day, a young girl agreed to pose for me while holding her cat in her arms. I noticed that they both had the same feline gaze, the same seriousness about them and shared great complicity. Yeux de chat, my first human/animal duo was born at the moment the animal and the model, in accord, turned towards my camera. Clic!” Here is a creation that overlaps the arbitrary boundaries of the conscious and the unconscious. Except the artist’s sources emanate from a privileged exchange with the animal kingdom. To be discovered!
by Michel Bois
It should be noted that this exhibition will resume after the numerous
cancellations due to the pandemic which have hindered the activities
of exhibition centres.
Marie Montiel is represented by Galerie Courtemanche,
820, rue Principale Ouest, Magog (QC) 819-843-2834
“One day, a young girl agreed to pose for me while holding…
Art in a Feminine Perspective
Madeleine Tailleur’s works reveal themselves in layers, as the viewer’s gaze takes time to wander over them to perceive the underlying diaphanous elements resting there, patiently waiting to catch the eye of the one who is willing to explore further. Women’s faces and silhouettes then unveil themselves in filigree, undulating in front of a background where transparent declinations of one tone create a soft and vaporous atmosphere. Her paintings thus offer a plurality of readings and interpretations, per everyone’s own perspective. A style of painting that transports us as in a waking dream. Pure magic!
by Lisanne Le Tellier
The art lover can find Madeleine Tailleur’s works at
Galerie Archambault (Lavaltrie), at Galerie Douce Passion (Québec)
as well as at Galerie Au P’tit Bonheur (La Malbaie).
A beautiful compilation of many of Madeleine Tailleur’s paintings
is also available in the form of a retrospective of her artistic journey.
“As my painting technique requires that I spend long periods of time
in front of my works to be able to decode them, something that many
people cannot do, I thought a book would allow a longer perusal time
and thus better appreciation of said works”, states the artist. 96 pages
of texts and images, available for the sum of $40,00 at 450-549-2740.
Madeleine Tailleur’s works reveal themselves in layers, as the viewer’s gaze takes time…
Contemporary Realism
The paintings of the artist are simultaneously abstract and figurative. Here a tracing or a barely suggested silhouette, there a house, a human figure, a tree, a bicycle or a bird is skillfully introduced. Céline Martel does not appear to be a woman of brisk transitions, hence, in the image of her soft ambiance works that are meant to rock the viewer, her recent renditions remain true pictorial parables: a call to serenity. Inspiring art!
by Marie-France Bégis
To view the works of Céline Martel:
Instagram: celinemartelart
Galerie Urbania: arturbania.ca/celine-martel/
Galerie d’art de Miss Rey: lagaleriedemissrey.com
Virtual exhibition Rendez-vous Art contemporain:
The paintings of the artist are simultaneously abstract and figurative…
Painting a country
Open air painter Michel Normandeau, associated with the Tremblant region, has tackled the wind and other weather elements of the vast territory of the valley of La Rouge and the valley of La Diable. His palette holds all the secrets of the visual richness of these two Laurentian microcosms. The richness of the open spaces, the unique light, the sand banks on the river shores, the flight of the swallows and of migrating birds, all of it is close at hand to him, for the pleasure of our eyes. Pure enjoyment!
by Robert Lafontaine
Open air painter Michel Normandeau, associated with the Tremblant…
Abstractions
The vibrant paintings of Anne Thibault (Tibo) evoke a new dimension. From the depths of her ink tones to the fire of scarlet hues, enhanced with juxtaposed asperities, her body of work is a luminous adventure. The artist enjoys exploring duality and paradox; she delves into the ambiguity and troubled waters of the human mind. A body of work full of poetry.
Isabelle Gauthier
The vibrant paintings of Anne Thibault (Tibo) evoke a new dimension..
Forms, Volume and Space
Mega-sculptures have their own communication code, a unique visual grammar. With the enigmatic nature of their language, their creators are unique raconteurs. We sometimes hear that artists provide the link between cosmic and earthly forces. A good sculptor, says Côté, is one that is able to render what he wishes to express while ensuring that viewers understand his message. A must read!
L’échange, aluminium and acrylic, 34 ft (height) × 8 ft × 8 ft, 1991 Note: Ville de Savigny le Temple, France — Erected in 1991 during a symposium, the piece is 11 metres high. Part of La Place des droits de l’homme.
Robert Lafontaine
Mega-sculptures have their own communication code, a unique visual grammar….
Great Encounter
“Several aspects of a painting are worthy of interest. The subject, the theme, must always be rendered in a simple, coherent fashion, but still impress the beholder. The viewer must be led – by avoiding unnecessary details – to follow the path the painter intended and behold the sensation which possessed the artist.” – Alfred Sysley.
A freedom-loving farmer’s son, René Gagnon wanted to be a “coureur des bois”. The hazards of life and an irresistible calling towards artistic creation determined otherwise. Definitely for the best! Indeed, some of the greatest visual artists of the time passed on to him their tremendous and tumultuous passion for art. Artists such as René Richard, Cosgrove, Ayotte, Albert Rousseau, Marc-Aurèle Fortin, and many others.
Au pays d’un royaume (Saguenay), oil on Masonite, 40 x 48 in, 2008
This simply due to the fact that he was the nephew of René Bergeron, an important artists’ manager, who invited his protégés to come and paint on his land in the Saguenay. Thus, self-taught painter René Gagnon was privy to the best lessons in art and life itself through the words of these passionate, freedom loving, masters. In interview, the artist warmly reminisces about these moments, late in the day, when everyone appraised the work of others, often providing constructive criticism. But always delightfully appreciative of how a colleague was able to capture the beauty of the landscape and the fugacious lights of the moment.
Féerie d’automne, oil on Masonite, 40 x 48 in, 2016
Text by Michel Bois
66, chemin de la Pointe à Gagnon, Anse de roche, Sacré-Cœur, QC
Musée René Gagnon, 203, rue Notre-Dame Ouest, Montréal, QC
Hiver 2020
Several aspects of a painting are worthy of interest…
Abstraction in Art
“Matter is the unconscious of form.” – Gaston Bachelard
The artist is delighted. Never before have her works been so well received by the public. Her agenda is filled with dates of forthcoming events and exhibitions.
Sylvie Grondin began her visual arts career in the field of printmaking at Engramme in Québec City. She has ever since been exploring the infinite possibilities of paper and colours. Hence, the inclusion of the precious and revealing material in her mixed techniques paintings.
Petits papiers (30), 20 x 20 in
Text by Michel Bois
Sylvie Grondin is represented by:
Galerie Off, 113, Rue Saint-Paul, Québec, QC 418 569-3316
Galerie Le Luxart, 66, Rue Saint-Paul Ouest, Montréal, QC 514 848-8944
Hiver 2020
Matter is the unconscious of form…
Contemporary Realism
“It is the selection of details, and not their number, that ensures a portrait’s likeness.” – Alexis Carrel
The initial contact is cordial, thus promising. The man is baldheaded and wears an earring on his left earlobe. His steel blue eyes express confidence while imparting a dreamlike stance. Denis Jacques (IAF) is forthcoming and loquacious.
His words flow like a river: “Natives of the Mauricie region either head for Québec City or for Montréal. I first went to the big city, but I adored Québec. There is no comparison. I was drawing a lot and had heard that the city hosted a lot of portraitists. When I saw Sainte-Anne Street, with its mighty trees and friendly artists, it was an easy choice. I first settled-in to draw portraits during the summer of 1980 and remained until 2004,” explains the artist.
Mathilde au pourpoint, oil on wood mounted on cotton, 20 x 16 in, 2015
Text by Michel Bois
Denis Jacques is represented by:
Galerie Archambault, 1303 Notre-Dame, Lavaltrie QC 450 586-2202
Galerie Le Pépin d’Art, 204 Sainte-Rose Blvd, Laval, QC 514 965-9637
Académie Internationale des Beaux-Arts du Québec.
He is also the founder of the Académie des Beaux-Arts de Québec, where he dispenses courses to a large public: 755 Charest Blvd. East, Québec, QC 581 989-1337 – admin@acbacq.com – denisjacques@acbaqc.com
denisjacques.ca – info@denisjacques.ca
Hiver 2020
It is the selection of details…
Artist Profil
“A painting and its painter part ways when they no longer need one another. When the painting can no longer nourish the painter, when the painter can no longer nourish his painting.” – Christian Bobin
A master painter once said: “If you start working on a painting and already see it completed in your mind, abandon the project and start another; your painting is already done,” relates the artist to his students. He adds: “A painting comes to life as it is being created.”
For two years now, Guy Brassard has had the opportunity of teaching drawing and oil painting to diverse groups of students. He urges them to step out of their comfort zone, to forego the safety of photographs and let themselves be guided by their instinct, by what radiates from within. An intuitive painter, he teaches them how to observe and interpret, to trust themselves, to loosen-up. “An artist must remain open to the unexpected, welcome surprises and accidents,” says the teacher. “The canvas will speak to you!” A conversation occurs between the painter and his painting. During the process of creation, it invites him to apply such a colour, to draw a particular shape. Once a work is completed, a painter might say, for example, that this barn’s blue roof simply could not have been painted in another colour; this shade of blue naturally imposed itself to him along the process.
Champs de rêve, oil applied with spatula on canvas, 27 x 57 in
Text by Anny Brassard
Hiver 2020
A painting and its painter part ways when…