Pierre Gauvreau was an early follower of Paul-Emile Borduas and a signatory to the Automatiste manifesto, being perhaps the most heavily influenced by surrealism of this group. His intense colours, unusual forms, and mixed media surfaces are at times fierce, always evocative, and often visually demanding. He took great joy in his work, and was a gentle and quiet man, a fact that seems a contrast to his vibrant, bold work. Gauvreau mixed his colours on the surface of his works, blending and working them into one another, then layering them up again. His work has a distinct feel, and Abstract Composition is fine example of his technique.
Pierre Gauvreau, painter (b at Montréal 23 Aug 1922). In 1941, while a student at Montréal’s École des beaux-arts, he discovered French modernism through magazine reproductions. His works made under this influence attracted Paul-Émile Borduas, who invited Gauvreau to join the radical young artists and intellectuals who met informally in…
Pierre Gauvreau, painter (b at Montréal 23 Aug 1922). In 1941, while a student at Montréal’s École des beaux-arts, he discovered French modernism through magazine reproductions. His works made under this influence attracted Paul-Émile Borduas, who invited Gauvreau to join the radical young artists and intellectuals who met informally in his studio. Like them, Gauvreau and his poet brother (Claude Gauvreau) became interested in the surrealist idea of automatism as a way of releasing creativity.
In 1943 Gauvreau and others were invited to exhibit with the Contemporary Art Society, which fostered Québec’s most adventurous art. Gauvreau remained associated with this circle, and became part of the group known as the Automatistes, who with others produced the 1948 manifesto Refus Global. By the mid-1950s, Gauvreau was using looser, more gestural imagery in his work, and was also working for the new medium of TV as a writer, director and producer. He stopped painting in the early 1960s and did not start again until 1975. His recent work continues his exploration of gesture and calligraphy.
