Jean-Pierre Guay
Jean-Pierre Guay, painter, was born in Charny, Quebec, in 1949. Through a pictorial universe combining the beauty of the wildness and more abstract elements, he delivers his vision - renewed - of nature. Reliefs and textures give his work a profoundly original character.
Jean-Pierre Guay - Wild beauty, matter and energy
Date and place of birth
Jean-Pierre Guay was born in Charny in 1949.
Background and career
From 1968 to 1971, Jean-Pierre Guay studied at Quebec City’s École des Beaux-Arts, then earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at the École des Arts Visuels at Université Laval in Quebec City.
Jean-Pierre Guay has been painting since his early twenties. Over the years, he has also been an antiquarian, cabinetmaker, antique furniture restorer, muralist and sculptor. This unusual path has given him a unique multidisciplinary vision and a commitment to his art since 1998.
His work and art
Jean-Pierre Guay draws on his other interests to enrich his style and give very original direction to his pictorial creation. With a rich background in the creation of murals, he applies an unconventional technique that makes very sparing use of colours, while his search for texture produces spectacular effects. His bas-relief paintings in acrylic actually produce an impressive impasto effect, collages of gauze, interplay of cording, textiles and other materials that inspire this painter.
While Jean-Pierre Guay’s work explores two themes, animal representations and more abstract images, it consistently stands out by its power and originality. And what can we say about his imaginative formats?
Jean-Pierre Guay’s paintings are produced in two phases. He first creates the ambience, or décor, through relief, abstract elements and bold slashes of colour. He then adds the more figurative elements, including emblematic animals drawn from Quebec’s wildlife, which come to life through his talented drawing.
Although a keen observer of nature, Jean-Pierre makes no effort to portray it accurately, and this places him on the fringes of animal art. He claims total creative licence and flies in the face of convention. His elks, Canada geese, herons, snow geese and occasional landscapes clearly reflect this.
The painter also explores a wid range of forms and textures, and his strong gestural technique imbues his work with great visual energy, a modern yet wild pulse.
Through a skillful marriage of abstract and figurative painting, Jean-Pierre Guay presents us with a renewed vision of nature, a powerful tribute to untamed beauty.
Jean-Pierre Guay is represented by the Au P'tit Bonheur Art Gallery since 2003, exclusively since 2005.
