Student Art Centre


Presentation

Ginette Plourde

Hello and welcome to the third edition of the Annual Exhibition of French students from Ontario. This year, the theme is Ose porter ton identité [Show your identity].

I am delighted to say a few words at this annual event that is cherished by the French Language Education Policy and Programs Branch.

We, at the Branch, believe that art is a powerful means that enables an individual to express their feelings, ideas and values as well as their creativity and thus express a personal vision of the world.

As you can see, the works are in various styles and reflect the personal interests of each budding artist taking part in the exhibition.

Congratulations to all the artist and a heartfelt thank you to all the teachers who, in the schools of French Ontario, help students express their identity thanks to an appropriate artistic pedagogy that takes into account individual differences.

Lise Goulet

The general theme of this year's works was borrowed from the exhibition of professional artists that is beginning to travel to various schools in the province. I decided to borrow the title Ose porter ton identité [Dare to Show Your Identity] because it represents, symbolizes or means that the artwork presented is the result of honest and authentic artistic practice of the artists.

Although art is sometimes learned by imitation, that does not mean that the creative act doesn't belong exclusively to the artist. The practice of art requires a high degree of autonomy, a taste for individuality, that is, not being afraid to be different from other people and, most of all, the ability to take risks. Only when we dare do we become increasingly creative. In other words, when I agree to experiment with textures, various objects, a diversity of composition principles, various materials and techniques, I end up creating interesting combinations, combinations that are visually very expressive. This makes me see my environment from a different perspective or to express personal feelings and values more poignantly. Finally, this helps me better understand what I feel and who I am.

This year, the artwork is presented not only under the general theme Dare to Show Your Identity but also in a variety of subthemes. For example: My Potential Identity, Reflexion, Drawn to This Landscape, etc. make the works exhibited even more interesting, reminding the visitors the artwork displayed on the walls of the French Language Branch is the result of the authentic, personal creative activity of the participating students.

I would like to mention the work of Richard, "Ric" Lebrun who created the stunning symbolic illustration of the theme Dare to Show Your Identity and that of Paul Walty, who provided the graphic design of the illustration of the theme and subtheme posters, of the invitations and of the certificate of recognition that will be awarded to all participating students. Ric Lebrun is a professional photographer and illustrator who lives in Orléans. He was an art designer for Radio-Canada and at present he works with the teachers of the Specialized Arts Program at the École secondaire Béatrice Desloges. Paul Walty is a professional artist and art designer living in Toronto. He is self-employed and also gives workshops in schools within the program Artiste en milieu scolaire [Artists in Schools] funded by the Ontario Arts Council.

I would like to remind you that you may come to see the exhibition. All you need to do is contact me, Lise Goulet, Education Officer and Project Manager at 416 325-2068 or at lise.goulet@ontario.ca.

Welcome, everybody and congratulations to all the participating students. Most especially, thank you to the teachers who submitted the artwork for this project.