The visual artist Marcelle Ferron, who would have turned 100 on January 29, was celebrated this Monday evening at the Outremont Theater in Montreal.
The tribute evening, orchestrated by Les Amis de la place Marcelle-Ferron and moderated by Mireille Deyglun and Sébastien Ricard, also opened the activities surrounding the 100th birthday of the artist belonging to the Automatist movement. She died in 2001 at the age of 77.
Born on January 29, 1924 in Louiseville, Mauricie, Marcelle Ferron is a pioneer of abstract art in Quebec and the first artist to receive the Paul Émile Borduas Prize (1983). She was the only painter to sign the Refus Global in 1948 and has been described as a “historical figure” since August.
MARIO BEAUREGARD/AGENCE QMI
Armand Vaillancourt and his partner Johanne Beaulieu attended the evening tribute to Marcelle Ferron at the Outremont Theater in Montreal.
She lived in the Outremont district for the last 20 years of her life.
The tribute evening offered at the Outremont Theater on Monday evening offered participants a rich commemorative program, including speeches and testimonials about the avant-garde artist, accompanied by archival images.
MARIO BEAUREGARD/AGENCE QMI
Sébastien Ricard and Mirelle Deyglun hosted the evening tribute to Marcelle Ferron at the Outremont Theater in Montreal.
Remember that his glass roofs can be admired in public spaces, at the Champ-de-Mars and Vendôme subway stations in Montreal and at the Granby Courthouse, the artist's favorite work.
MARIO BEAUREGARD/AGENCE QMI
Diane Hamelin, Louise Déry, Françoise Sullivan, Babalou Hamelin.
Upcoming exhibitions
An exhibition of Marcelle Ferron's work and approach will be held on Avenue Bernard in the Outremont district from May to October.
Twelve panels will be installed for the exhibition in the heart of the neighborhood where she lived, showing the artist's aesthetic evolution, from her early paintings in the 1940s to public art in the 1960s and 1970s. Creations from the 1980s and 1990s round off the course.
Photo courtesy of the Estate of Marcelle Ferron
Marcelle Ferron in her workshop in Clamart in France around 1959.
The Simon Blais gallery will present a three-part exhibition in the spring, while the Musée du Bas-Saint-Laurent in Rivière-du-Loup will present the Marcelle Ferron exhibition. An inexhaustible flame, until April 21st.
The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts will host the conference on the state of research and the artistic legacy of Marcelle Ferron from March 14 to 24, 2024 as part of the International Festival of Film on Art.
Photo from the City of Montreal Archives
Marcelle Ferron in front of the plan of the glass roof of Champ-de-Mars station in 1968.
For more details on the activities organized to celebrate Marcelle Ferron's 100th birthday or for more information about the artist's career, visit marcelleferron.org.