Biography of Christian DEBERDT

Christian Deberdt, portrait par Geneviève Jost, 1996

BIOGRAPHY

Christian Deberdt was born in Paris in 1947 into an artistic family. He attended the Gambetta Printing School and the Estienne Graphic Arts School in Paris, while apprenticing in photo and printing, at studios specializing in art reproduction.

In 1966, at the age of eighteen, with four years’ experience in the field of art reproduction, he left Paris to start a new life in Montréal, where his eldest brother was already established.

In 1967-68, Christian was forced to return to France to complete his compulsory military service. He came back to Canada in October 1968, having married a Montrealer.

Over the next six years, Christian made his living in various ways, working in some of Montreal’s best bars and restaurants and travelling through Canada and the United States selling encyclopedias. Christian started painting as a way to counter the boredom he experienced, staying in one hotel room after another. He painted the scenes that surrounded him and was greatly encouraged when his friends and acquaintances purchased several of his works.

Although he continued to work as a salesman, by 1975 he had started taking painting more seriously. Very shortly thereafter, Christian realized it was impossible for him to continue to do both. In 1976 he decided to become a full-time artist. Deberdt was greatly influenced by the Group of Seven, in particular by Lawren Harris’ graphic landscapes. Around this time he also discovered the work of another Canadian artist, Tom Forrestal, the hyperrealist. From these influences, a distinctly “Deberdtian” style and vision began to emerge.

Deberdt works, as his paintings might suggest, with rare precision. Although he sometimes paints up to ten hours a day, he rarely produces more than twenty-five works a year, as each one takes weeks to complete. Many of his paintings have been used as cover art for various publications.

In 1981, the artist fulfilled a long-cherished dream of purchasing a house in the Eastern Townships, the region that most inspires him. Several years afterwards, he met and later married Lucie. The artist’s personal life was transformed, as was his work. Having become a father to Lucie’s three children, Christian’s paintings – which are generally devoid of all temporal references – now sometimes include children going about their daily activities. These are happy moments, which the artist likes to include in his work.

Christian died in November 2011 in the Eastern Townships, at the age of 64.

Christian Deberdt’s work has been shown across Canada and the United States since 1976. His paintings can be found in many of the most prestigious collections in Canada.

SUBJECT

For Christian the subject of a painting is not cerebral, nor is it intellectual or ideological. His subjects are simple, springing from his observations of nature. His schematic representations of mountains, trees, lakes and rivers, rocks and flowers reduce these elements to their purest form. The scenes he depicts are almost always rural: this celebration of bucolic landscapes and lush vegetation reflect the artist’s own life and values.

TECHNIQUE

Preferring to use acrylic paints or Prismacolor pencils, Deberdt combines fantasy and reality in order to create works with a three-dimensional quality. We find references to several artistic movements in his work, among them hyperrealism, surrealism and fantasy. From these influences emerge a distinct and unique style. Christian sees light as an essential element of his compositions and goes against the established rules concerning the use of light and shade. In his lush and heavenly forests the light is sometimes multi-directional, creating a mystical effect that transports us into a dream world.

In 1996, Christian started working on a series of miniatures, the dimensions of which seldom exceed 2” x 3”.

PRESS REVIEW

http://id.erudit.org/iderudit/54765ac

http://voir.ca/arts-visuels/2009/07/09/deberdt-rencontre-de-la-3e-dimension/

EXHIBITIONS

2011-10-09-08-07-06-05-04-03-02-01-00
Artists Choice, group exhibition, Galerie Valentin, Montréal

2011-10-09-08-07-06-05-04-03-02-01-00-99-98-97-96-85-94
Small size works, group exhibition, Galerie Valentin, Montréal

2009 Retrospective Exhibition, Fondation J.Armand Bombardier, Valcourt, QC

2006 La fête des fleurs, group exhibition, Musée Marc-Aurèle Fortin, Montréal

2005 Solo exhibition, Galerie Valentin, Montréal

2005 Solo exhibition, Gallery Gevik, Toronto

2003 Solo exhibition, Gallery Gevik, Toronto

2002 Solo exhibition, Galerie Valentin, Montréal

1999 Solo exhibition, Galerie Valentin, Montréal

1999 Self-Portrait, group exhibition, Galerie Valentin, Montréal

1996 Duo with Geneviève Jost, Galerie Valentin, Montréal

1994 Raymond, Chabot, Martin, Paré et associés, Sherbrooke, QC

1992 Artist’s studio, Stukely Sud, QC

1991 Traversée internationale du lac Memphrémagog, Magog, QC

1991 Galerie Valentin, Montréal

1991 Lourie Gallery, Toronto

1989 Galerie l’Art Français, Montréal

1989 Musée des Beaux-Arts de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC

1986 Galerie l’Art Français, Montréal

1985 Huit peintres réalistes, Galerie l’Art Français, Montréal

1983 Galerie l’Art Français, Montréal

1981 Galerie l’Art Français, Montréal

1980 Peintres du Québec, Shell Canada, Calgary, AB

1981 Toronto International Art Fair, Toronto

1980 Galerie l’Art Français, Montréal

1980 Toronto International Art Fair, Toronto

1979 New York International Art Fair, New York

1979 Esso Concerts, Place des Arts, Montréal

1978 M. J. S. International, Forth Worth, Texas, USA

1978 Galerie l’Art Français, Montréal

1978 Art 78-JPS & PS, Montréal

1978 Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC

1977 F. Tannock and Sons Gallery, Montréal

1976 Galerie Knobb, Montréal

INTERVIEWS

L’Artiste et son univers, Interview with Hélène Hardy. Videotron Productions, La télévision de la Rive-Sud, 1991 (length : 25 min.)

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Mathieu Petit, « Rencontre de la 3^e dimension », Voir, July 9, 2009, online http://voir.ca/arts-visuels/2009/07/09/deberdt-rencontre-de-la-3e-dimension/

Dany, Jacques, “Christian Deberdt revient à la vie”, Le Reflet du Lac, May 20, 2009

“ Répertoire de A jusqu'à Z…Artistes venus d'ailleurs ”, Parcours Art et art de vivre, Vol. 13, no. 2, Oct., Nov., Dec., 2007

Bernier, Robert, “ Imaginer le monde… C. Deberdt à la galerie Jean-Pierre Valentin ”, Parcours l'informateur des arts, Vol. 8, no. 3, Fall 2002

Bruens, Louis, Investir dans les oeuvres d'art : guide de la peinture figurative, Montréal: Éditions la Palette, 1988

Boulizon, Guy, Le paysage dans la peinture au Québec, LaPrairie : Éditions Marcel Broquet, 1984

Vallée, Félix, Le Guide Vallée:_marché de la peinture, Sainte-Foy, Québec : Les Publications Charles-Huot, 1983

Robert, Guy, Art actuel au Québec depuis 1970 : un essai, Mont-Royal : Iconia, 1983

de Roussan, Jacques, Le paysage dans l'art au Québec, St. Constant, Québec : Éditions M. Broquet, 1982

de Roussan, Jacques, Le nu dans l'art au Québec, St. Constant, Québec : Éditions M. Broquet, 1982

Robert, Guy, “ Deberdt ou Le clair regard du matin ”, Vie des Arts, Vol. 28, no. 111, Summer 1983, p. 42

Trépanier, Jean, 100 peintres du Québec, Montréal: Hurtubise, 1980

Jacques de Roussan, « Une nouvelle mythologie » dans Vie des Arts, vol. 23, n° 94, 1979, p. 69 http://id.erudit.org/iderudit/54765ac

Robert, Guy, La peinture au Québec depuis ses origines, Ste-Adèle QC: Iconia, 1978

PRINCIPAL COLLECTIONS

Bombardier, Valcourt QC

Cape Breton University Art Gallery, Sydney, NS

Glaxo Canada

Invesfor, Montréal

La Laurentienne, Compagnie d’Assurance, Québec, QC

Montréal Trust, Montréal

Musée du Saguenay, Chicoutimi, QC

Musée des Beaux-Arts de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke QC

Canada Post, Ottawa

Reader’s Digest, Montréal

The Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener-Waterloo, ON

Le Groupe Bocage, Sherbrooke, QC

McMaster University Art Gallery, Hamilton, ON

Musée de Charlevoix, Pointe au Pic, QC

Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Fredericton, NB

Numerous other private collections