NORMAND BOISVERT, Nov 17 to Dec 22, 2007, Stephen Lowe Gallery, Calgary

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"Lueur Automnale"

Normand Boisvert, "Lueur Automnale," 2007, oil on canvas, 40" x 60".

NORMAND BOISVERT

Stephen Lowe Gallery, Calgary

Nov 17 to Dec 22, 2007

By Wes Lafortune

Born in Trois-Rivières in 1950, landscape painter Normand Boisvert is a self-taught artist who has staked a name for himself as a keeper of quintessential Quebec. He started with his first small studio at the age of 17, painting diligently and selling his work for $5 to $15 apiece, soon expanding into another Trois-Rivières studio and building his repertoire. “He works in a naïve style,” says Alice Law, director of the gallery. “All of the works are oils on canvas.” The practice of naïve art has a strong tradition in Quebec because of its storytelling qualities. In Boisvert’s case, the story is about a man in love with the land and colour. According to writer Claude Marcouiller, “many have tracked the artist’s progress, from his beginnings with the figurative through his black period to his colourful nudes, leading to the landscape…” Boisvert’s landscapes have attracted the most attention in recent years. Most often depicting scenes of villages, the colourful works are detailed with homes and out-buildings that appear as if they have always been part of the sites Boisvert interprets. Well-known in central Canada, the artist is building a growing reputation in the west.

Represented by: Stephen Lowe Gallery, Calgary; Rendezvous Art Gallery, Vancouver.