Lot 78
MICHELINE BEAUCHEMIN (1930-2009), R.C.A., O.C.
Provenance:
Purchased directly from the artist
Note:
Maquette for a larger work
MICHELINE BEAUCHEMIN (1930-2009), R.C.A.
Textile artist Micheline Beauchemin is best known for her monumental tapestries and theatre curtains, as well as works of embroidery and stained glass, costumes and paintings. She has experimented with varied materials, including metallic yarns, natural and synthetic threads and glass beads.
Micheline Beauchemin was born in Longueuil, Quebec in 1929. She studied at Montréal’s École des Beaux-Arts, and in Paris at the École des Beaux-Arts and Académie de la Grande Chaumière. Beauchemin first developed her artistic talent through painting and stained glass. While on a trip to Greece, she became interested in murals, embroidery and tapestries, and began experimenting with new textures and colours. She held her first exhibition of stained glass in 1953 in Chartres and in 1956 she exhibited her first tapestries at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Chartres. Beauchemin returned to Canada in 1957, and took part in the first Exposition national d’artisanat du Canada.
Some of Beauchemin's most famous tapestries include the acrylic curtain that she made for the Grande Salle of the Théâtre Maisonneuve at Place des Arts in Montréal (1963-1967) and the stage curtain of the National Arts Centre in Ottawa (1966-1969). She was also commissioned to create tapestries for Queen's Park in Toronto (1968-1969), the social sciences building at York University (1970), the Hudson's Bay Company in Winnipeg (1970), the Canadian pavilion at the 1970 World Fair in Osaka, the Department of Revenue in Quebec, and many other locations. Beauchemin’s works are included in prominent collections throughout the world, including at the National Gallery of Canada Beauchemin was elected member of the Royal Society of Arts of Canada and the Royal Society of Canada in 1971 and received several prominent awards throughout her career, including the Saidye Bronfman Award in 1986, and the Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts in 2006. Beauchemin passed away in 2009.
Selected Corporate, Private and Public Collections
Bibliothèque central, Quebec
Canada Council, Ottawa, ON
Canadian Museum of Civilization, Gatineau, QC
Claridge Collection, Montreal, QC
Government of Ontario Art Collection, Toronto, ON
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, QC
National Gallery, Ottawa, ON
North York City Hall, Toronto, ON
Pearson Airport, Toronto, ON
Revenue Building, Québec, QC
Taxation Data Center, Shawinigan, QC
Selected Solo and Group Exhibitions
2013 Homage to Micheline Beauchemin, Quebec’s Master Weaver,Triennale Internationale des Arts Textiles Outaouais, QC
2009 Micheline Beauchemin: River of Light, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, QC
2006 Prix Saidye Bronfman Award, David Kaye Gallery, Toronto, ON
1990 Place des Arts, Montreal, QC
1981 Quebec Tapestries, Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge, AB
1980 Dixième Biennale internationale de tapisserie de Lausanne, Switzerland
Barbican Centre, United Kingdom
1976 National Arts Center, Ottawa, ON
1958 Galerie Denise Delrue, Montreal, QC
1957, 1958 Brussels World Fair, Canadian Pavilion
1957 National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, ON
1955, 1956 Palais des Beaux-Arts, Chartres, France
1955 Palais de Chaillot, Paris, France
Selected Prizes and Honours
1991 Knight of the Ordre national du Québec
1988 Prize of the Canadian Institute in Quebec
Prix d’excellence Lucien Desmarais “La Navette d’or”
1983 Honorary Doctorate in Arts, Laval University
1982 Saidye Bronfman Award for Excellence in Fine Crafts
Medal of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada
1973 Officer of the Order of Canada
1967 Canada Council Prize
Canadian Centennial Silver Medal