Pierre-Yves Girard

Each of Pierre-Yves Girard’s paintings is the result of strictly physical gestures, inspired and driven by an imprinting technique applied to oil paint in a more or less liquid state. Girard seeks to harness the possibilities offered by this materiality of paint using a combination of tools that are often unconventional yet carefully chosen.

Girard is particularly drawn to imprints that offer referential potential—evoking, at times, mineral structures or organic textures reminiscent of plant or animal forms. The intensity of this referential quality varies depending on the type of imprint and the material created; some remain true to their abstract nature, while others inevitably evoke figurative imagery. By working over long periods with a medium prone to unpredictable accidents, the artist questions the spontaneity of the painting process, often finding the distinction between premeditation and chance completely inverted. He finds it increasingly logical to trust a form of automatic gesture to arrive at a conscious artistic intention. These concerns shape his artistic inquiry, just as each imprint and material formation molds his pictorial vocabulary.

Born in 1982 in Chicoutimi, Pierre-Yves Girard lives and works in Montreal. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Visual and Media Arts from the Université du Québec à Montréal. He has been a member of the Clark centre since 2006 and has been represented by Galerie d’Este since 2012, exhibiting works at the Papier fair in Montreal and the Toronto Contemporary Art Fair. He completed a residency at Centre Sagamie in June 2013 and has participated in various benefit auctions. Clark, B-312, Plein-sud, the Fondation du Musée d’art contemporain des Laurentides, Écomusée du fier monde, etc. Her works can be found in the Loto-Québec and National Bank collections.