MITCHELL/RIOPELLE, NOTHING IN MODERATION
A CELEBRATION OF TWO GIANT PRACTITIONERS OF MODERNITY
Some 60 majors works have been assembled to examine their respective artistic careers in terms of their relationship, from their first meeting in 1955 until their separation in 1979. Designed by the MNBAQ and organized in partnership with the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), supported by the Joan Mitchell Foundation in New York and the Estate of Jean-Paul Riopelle in Montréal, the exhibition mainly presents large-format paintings, a number of works on paper and archival documents from more than 30 French, Canadian and American lenders, private and museum collections. The presentation explores how the two artists, who shared their lives for nearly 25 years, in Paris, then in Vétheuil in the Seine valley, developed a studio practice and a distinctive body of work while sustaining a broad dialogue focusing on abstraction. Their tastes for the impressionist heritage, nature and a form of provocation certainly drew them together. Their deeply singular conception of painting and work methods were entirely shaped by their romantic relationship.