Collection: Ginet Leblond

Born in Beauport, Quebec, in 1951, this alchemist artist transforms paint into the gold of time. She studied visual arts at Laval University and drawing at the Musée de Québec. She also took private lessons for several years. She then taught drawing and painting for twenty years.

When she met her partner Marc-André Fortin, he introduced her to Quebec antiques, being himself a passionate collector. His partner takes care of restoring all the objects she paints. She sometimes depicts scenes dating from the French regime but more so the period from 1860 to 1920. This type of approach requires specific research. First, she must find these old objects and ensure that they are suitable for her work. Then, another step begins: bibliographic research of period subjects. Then comes the composition. A challenge is presented to her by the form offered by these supports. There is a relief to respect so that the composition slides well on the support. She works with trompe l'oeil and the visual effects are often fascinating.

Ginet Leblond is not only a painter, she is also a clairvoyant. In the lines and cracks of the old wood, she sees the past. Under her brush, the shepherd bringing his sheep to the field, the grandfather with a nostalgic look smoking a good pipe, the apple picking in autumn, or the ride in a sleigh are reborn, and these are just a few examples of scenes expressing this life of yesteryear.

Having adopted an unusual medium, it is under his brush that an old, worn table becomes a backward-looking painting, just as a pair of cracked panels transforms into a nostalgic diptych.