Automatist, Pierre Gauvreau was part of a circle of young artists from various discipines who gravitated around painter Paul Emile-Borduas in 1940’s Montreal. Together the Automatists revolutionized painting in restrictive Quebec of the Duplessis years. Inspired by the Surrealists, they found freedom of expression in abstraction pursued through automatism: an instinctive, unpremeditated form of creating art.

- Curator Ray Ellenwood, on the Automatists.

Pierre Gauvreau died on April 7th, 2011, and would have just passed his 90th birthday when Art = Libération was slated to open. Pierre’s wife Janine Carreau devoloped her own career as a painter and photographer while combining energies with her husband for more than 35 years. For Pierre Gauvreau and Janine Carreau, the Automatist style has produced an aesthetic of exuberance - use of vibrant colours and textures demonstrate their celebration of life and of freedom from the strict cleric culture of mid-century Quebec.

Hosted by Baron Gallery in Gastown, the exhibition features a selection of 47 works curated by long time friend to the artists, Ray Ellenwood, author of Egregore: A History of the Montréal Automatist Movement, and The Automatiste Revolution.

Opening night: 7pm Thursday October 13, 2011 Refreshments will be served

Janine Carreau and Ray Ellenwood will be present.

604.682.1114 info@barongallery.ca

September 28, 2011 - Spring 2012

ART = LIBÉRATION Automatist Pierre Gauvreau (1922-2011) & Janine Carreau

Baron Gallery293 Columbia St @ CordovaGastown, Vancouverwww.barongallery.ca

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

“La jeunesse est en nous et nous sommes la jeunesse” (Claude Gauvreau)

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Their manifesto Refus global (1948) is widely recognized as a crucial expression of Quebec modernism and the unrest that would eventually lead to the so-called ‘Quiet Revolution.’ Pierre Gauvreau was very active in the production of the manifesto and eventually in defending it publicly against attacks by the clergy and newspaper columnists.