Quebec artists celebrated in new McMichael exhibition

YorkRegion.com
Nov. 7, 2014
By Adam Martin-Robbins

A plethora of pieces by prominent painters from La Belle Province awaits you at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection.

Between the blockbuster exhibition Morrice and Lyman in the Company of Matisse, and the new show, Eyes on Quebec: Treasures from the Andree Rheaume Fitzhenry and Robert Fitzhenry Collection, opening Saturday (Nov. 8), you can get your fill of art from Ontario’s eastern neighbour.

The former, running until Jan. 4, features 152 works by Montreal-born, expatriate artists J.W. Morrice and John Lyman and 13 by French master spread over five galleries.

The latter, running until Feb. 1, 2015, is comprised of significant works by several celebrated Quebec artists including Clarence Gagnon, Marc-Aurele Fortin, Jean Paul Lemieux, Paul-Emile Borduas and Jean Paul Riopelle.

That show is displayed over three gallery spaces, each one highlighting a different aspect of the history and development of art in Quebec.

The notion of the figure is explored through the work of Jean Paul Lemieux, to whom an entire room in the exhibition is dedicated.

The tradition of landscape painting in Quebec is represented through pieces by Clarence Gagnon, Cornelius Kreighoff, Robert Wakeham Pilot, Marc-Aurele de Foy Suzor-Cote, among others.

Their paintings of pastoral scenes offer an alternative vision of Canada that differs greatly from the rugged, unpeopled landscapes of Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven.

The last gallery space focuses on the rise of non-representational art following the Second World War, with particular attention to two artistic movements that distinguished themselves in Quebec: the Automatistes and Prisme d’Yeux.

Both movements were based on a rejection of mainstream culture in the mid-20th century.

The artists featured in this section include Paul-Emile Bourduas, Alfred Pellan, Leon Bellefleur, Rita Letendre, and Jean Paul Riopelle, among others.

The exhibition was organized by the McMichael gallery and developed by the gallery’s curatorial team of Katerina Atanassova, Sharona Adamowicz-Clements, and Chris Finn.

It was made possible through the support of The Andree Rheaume and Robert Fitzhenry Family Foundation.

The McMichael gallery is at 10365 Islington Ave. in Kleinburg. For more information, visit mcmichael.com.