Jean Paul Riopelle
By Jean-Paul Riopelle is one of the first Canadian artists to gain worldwide recognition. He was also one of those who signed the famous document “Refus Global”, which opposed all social, artistic and psychological foundations of Quebec at that time, against all painting techniques available at that time.
As the son of a builder, Riopel began taking drawing lessons at age 13. The teacher instilled in him the idea of copying nature in his works, and this base became a real problem for the young artist when he continued his studies at a higher educational institution. Despite the desire of his parents to teach his son to be an architect, Riopel followed his heart. At first, he had serious conflicts with the new teacher, since he did not recognize the realism of the student’s paintings. Over time, Riopel discovered new sides in himself and allowed the subconscious to come to the fore while working on paintings. So he began to write in the style of automatism, which denied the need for a conscious approach to drawing and considered the true art only works created thanks to subconscious decisions. After some time, Riopel began to be compared with the great Jackson Pollock.
In the 1950s, Riopel developed his now recognizable style with the famous painting “Blue Night”. After moving to Paris, the artist participated in numerous prestigious exhibitions, created, created new masterpieces, and then met Joan Mitchell, with whom relations lasted for 25 years.
