The Musée régional de Vaudreuil-Soulanges is delighted to welcome, until September 8, the exhibition Carré O carré by painter Louise Lachance Legault.

Painter Louise Lachance Legault creates her works with exuberance and emotion. Her semi-realistic and abstract canvases unveil the mysteries of nature, characters and wide-open spaces that she studies, knows and discovers in an intense creative evolution. Her work captures precise moments in time and space. She draws and composes to celebrate Life, seeing and feeling all that surrounds us. The physical spontaneity of working with all water-based media is what makes her an artist. Even today, at the age of 81, Louise paints three times a week online with American and Canadian friends.

The diversity of her work reflects her insatiable curiosity. Always eager to embark on new explorations, Louise also studies music, sculpture, jewelry, art history and, in particular, printmaking. Music is a major influence: she plays the piano and listens to many forms of music, especially opera. For several years now, she has also been interested in writing, and this is reflected in the exhibition.

All the works presented in this exhibition have one thing in common: they are square in format. The symbolism of the square is intimately linked to reason, rigor and uprightness. It's a shape that doesn't occur naturally in nature. Above all, it's a symbol of perfection. It also corresponds to the number 4, symbolizing the unity, wholeness and balance of the four psychic functions: thought, sensation, intuition and feeling.

A prolific artist

Louise Lachance Legault was born in Quebec City and now lives in Saint-Anicet, on the shores of Lake Saint-François. She began drawing and painting at an early age, and has been living creatively for over 60 years. After graduating with a diploma in interior design and metalwork, she attended École des Beaux-Arts, Université du Québec à Montréal and Concordia University, graduating with a BFA (Baccalauréat en arts visuels avec distinction), majoring in painting and printmaking. Louise has taken countless workshops in watercolor, mixed media, printmaking and monotype in Canada and the United States, all of which influence her artistic practice.

She has led numerous workshops over 30 years in North America. Louise was the founder of Atelier Petit Canal in Lachine, as well as co-founder and leader for 22 years of Arts'Mana, a group of professional women painters. She was the creator of an international artists' retreat workshop at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in Florida for 10 years. She has also given numerous lectures, workshops and demonstrations, and has been a judge for many national and international exhibitions. Her work can be found in collections in Canada, the United States, Mexico and Europe.

Louise Lachance is a member of several artists' associations in Canada, such as the Regroupement des artistes en arts visuels du Québec (RAAV); and in America, including the following: National Watercolor Society, North West Watercolor Association, Women Painters in America and International Society of Experimental Artists.

Meet the artist 

Meet Louise Lachance Legault on Sunday, August 18, from 2 to 4 p.m at the Museum.