RITA LETENDRE: LINES OF STRENGTH

January 27 to April 10, 2022 
Curator: Oriane A.-Van Coppenolle, curator at the Musée du Bas-Saint-Laurent

“In my paintings, I try to fracture a moment, to catch a flash of light, but by leaving an opening onto the infinite, as if nothing was left of the painting in the end.” – Interview by C. L. Gagnon, “Rita Letendre,” Vie des arts, No. 57, Winter 1969-70.

Lines of Strength highlights the work of Rita Letendre, this emblematic figure of Canada’s abstract art field and whose artworks express a flamboyant energy. Born in Drummondville in 1928 to Abenaki and Quebecois parents, Rita Letendre distinguished herself in Montreal’s art scene during the 1950s. The exhibition features over 30 pieces produced between 1953 and 1980 and gathered in three distinct sections referring to the artist’s different chapters of pictorial research.

This exhibition offers insight into the key creative period of her signature arrow motif, developed during the 1970s. Those sharp points split the medium, collide and reflect the inherent strength of compositions dominated by colour and light. The choreographer Soraïda Caron was invited to create an original piece in direct response to Rita Letendre’s work.

Exhibition produced and circulated by the Musée du Bas-Saint-Laurent with the participation of the Government of Canada.