Description:

Jean Paul Lemieux, RCA (1904-1990), Canadian
LE PIQUE NIQUE, 1968
oil on canvas
signed and dated "68" lower right; titled to stretcher; titled and dated to gallery labels verso

Estimate: $100,000—125,000 CAD

    Provenance:
  • Roberts Gallery, Toronto, ON
    Equinox Gallery, Vancouver, BC
    Acquired from the above in 1973 by the present Private Collection, Vancouver, BC

  • Dimensions:
  • 14 x 23 in — 34.9 x 57.4 cm
  • Artist Name:
  • Jean Paul Lemieux, RCA (1904-1990)
  • Exhibited:
  • Our December Choice, 1968, Roberts Gallery, Toronto, ON.
  • Literature:
  • This painting will be included in Grandbois’s forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the artist’s work. / Cette œuvre sera incluse dans le prochain catalogue raisonné de l’artiste par Grandbois.
  • Medium:
  • oil on canvas
  • Notes:
  • Accompanied by a copy of the purchase invoice (client name redacted).

    Lemieux rarely painted picnics as the central subject matter for his artworks. One of the artist’s works portraying a similar theme depicts a group of students and nuns on a riverbank, congregated around a picnic blanket laden with food. That painting, from his primitivist period (1940-1946), features a pyramidal composition, topped by the steeple of a village church (Le pique nique, 1944, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec). The artist took pleasure in denouncing the hold of religion over the people of Quebec. In 1980, the theme gave rise to a huge very colorful painting, entitled Picnic on an American Beach, today in the collection of Jacqueline et Paul Desmarais.

    When Lemieux returned to this subject matter in 1968, he abandoned any religious narrative to instead imbue the scene with simplicity, pleasure and relaxation, as he did in his student drawings, where he sketched scenes from his summer vacations with Madeleine (who would become his future wife) and their friends relaxing in the sun at Port-au-Persil and Les Éboulements in Charlevoix.

    This panoramic composition bears the hallmarks of his classic period (1956-1970), with three overlapping, slightly inclined, bands of colour. The picnic takes place in the foreground, on lush green grass dotted with flowers. In the centre, a thin horizontal strip of colour evokes the water, which would have merged with the sky if the artist had not drawn a delicate horizon line. Lastly, a band of dark sky is painted in a more gestural way than the other planes of colour, from which the movement contrasts with the statuesque posture of the featureless figures placed symmetrically around the spread on the picnic blanket. The tight framing of the scene, bordered on the left and right by figures partially cut off from view, draws the eye to the picnic blanket in the centre. The blanket’s white tone with red dots of colour adds a lightness to the composition's twilight atmosphere.

    Once again, Jean Paul Lemieux succeeds in bringing together the two fundamental concerns of his art - time and space - in Le pique nique. This charming composition evokes the happy memories deeply embedded in the artist’s mind.

    This essay was contributed by Michèle Grandbois, Ph.D.. Grandbois is an independent researcher, and is currently compiling a catalogue raisonné of the works of Jean Paul Lemieux.
    -------------------
    Le thème du pique-nique a rarement fait l’objet de tableaux à l’huile chez Lemieux. Nous lui connaissons une œuvre relative à ce loisir qui met en scène un groupe d’élèves et de religieuses au bord d’une rivière autour d’une nappe garnie de victuailles. Cette composition appartenant à sa période narrative (1940-1946) développe un plan pyramidal au sommet duquel pointe le clocher d’une église de village (Le pique nique, 1944, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec). L’artiste se plaisait alors à dénoncer l’emprise de la religion sur le peuple québécois. En 1980, le thème donna lieu à un immense tableau très coloré, intitulé Picnic at New Smyrna Beach, aujourd’hui dans la collection de Jacqueline et Paul Desmarais.

    Lorsque Lemieux reprend le sujet du pique-nique en 1968, il délaisse le narratif religieux pour imprégner sa scène de simplicité, de plaisir et de détente, à l’image de ses dessins d’étudiant où il croquait sur le vif des scènes de ses vacances estivales avec Madeleine, sa future épouse et leurs amis se détendant sous le soleil à Port-au-Persil et aux Éboulements en Charlevoix.

    La composition panoramique comporte ici les caractéristiques de sa période classique (1956-1970), avec ses trois bandes superposées, légèrement inclinées. La bande inférieure, la plus grande, accueille le lieu du pique-nique sur un sol verdoyant piqué de quelques fleurs. Au centre, une mince bande évoque l’eau qui se confondrait au ciel si le peintre n’avait pas tiré une délicate ligne d’horizon. Enfin, on remarquera la bande de ciel sombre, brossée de manière plus gestuelle que les autres plans : le mouvement qui s’en dégage contraste avec la posture statuesque des personnages aux visages sans traits qui sont distribués symétriquement autour de la nappe recouverte d’agapes. Le cadrage serré de la scène, bordée à gauche et à droite par des figures incomplètes, induit le regard sur la nappe dont la blancheur et les taches rouges animent de légèreté l’ambiance crépusculaire de la composition.

    Encore une fois, Jean Paul Lemieux réussit avec Le pique nique à réunir les deux préoccupations fondamentales de son art, le temps et l’espace, dans une magnifique composition qui évoque des souvenirs heureux profondément enfouis dans sa mémoire.

    Cet essai a été rédigé par Michèle Grandbois, Ph.D.. Grandbois est une chercheuse indépendante qui travaille actuellement à l'élaboration d'un catalogue raisonné des œuvres de Jean Paul Lemieux.

  • Condition:
  • Very good overall condition.
    Small area of possible consolidation in upper left quadrant.

Accepted Forms of Payment:

American Express, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

The Auctioneers will not undertake packing or shipping. The purchaser must designate and arrange for the services of an independent shipper and be responsible for all shipping and insurance expenses. The Auctioneers will, upon request, provide names of professional packers and shippers but will not be held responsible for the service or have any liability for providing this information. Reliable pre-auction estimates of shipping costs of lots offered in this sale may be obtained from:

PICK UP & SHIPPING FROM TORONTO:

When contacting the shippers please have your invoice # and item information ready.

PakShip
Attn: Taurus Chan
Tel: 905.470.6874
416.293.8225
Fax: 905.470.6875
[email protected]
www.pakship.ca

Safer Shipping
Attn: Perry Hehn
Tel: 416.299.3367
Fax: 416.299.9750
[email protected]
www.safershipping.ca

PICK UP & SHIPPING FROM VANCOUVER:

Please note that lots in our Waddington's West auctions are located in Vancouver, B.C. When contacting the shippers please have your invoice # and item information ready.

The UPS Store 424
Tel: 604-559-5446
[email protected]

PakMail
Tel: 604-472-6245
[email protected]
www.pakmailcanada.com

CITES WARNING:
Restrictions exist regarding the import and export of species protected under CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species). This includes but is not limited to items made of or containing bone (whalebone etc.), ivory, tortoise shell, seal skin, rhinoceros horn and any other animal part and is strictly controlled or forbidden by most countries. Please review your country's laws before bidding on pieces made of or containing these restricted items. It is the sole responsibility of the buyer to inquire about and obtain the proper permits for artwork purchased that may contain restricted materials, if such permit can be obtained. Please contact the department for further assistance. For more information please visit www.cites.org

November 28, 2024 8:00 PM EST
Toronto, ON, CA

Waddington's

You agree to pay a buyer's premium of up to 25% and any applicable taxes and shipping.

View full terms and conditions

Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
CA$0 CA$199 CA$10
CA$200 CA$499 CA$20
CA$500 CA$999 CA$50
CA$1,000 CA$1,999 CA$100
CA$2,000 CA$4,999 CA$200
CA$5,000 CA$9,999 CA$500
CA$10,000 CA$19,999 CA$1,000
CA$20,000 CA$49,999 CA$2,000
CA$50,000 CA$99,999 CA$5,000
CA$100,000 CA$299,999 CA$10,000
CA$300,000 CA$999,999 CA$25,000
CA$1,000,000 CA$1,999,999 CA$50,000
CA$2,000,000 CA$2,999,999 CA$100,000
CA$3,000,000 CA$4,999,999 CA$200,000
CA$5,000,000 + CA$300,000