Sold for: $22,230

PROVENANCE
Private Collection, Montreal
Sold sale of Canadian Post-War and Contemporary Art, Heffel Fine Art Auction House, November 28, 2013, lot 34
Galerie d'Art Michel-ange, Montreal
Private Collection, Vancouver

Paul Beaulieu traveled to Paris in 1938 and purchased a studio in Montparnasse, painting landscapes, figurative works and still lifes. During the Nazi invasion in 1940, he was interned at Saint-Denis, where, surprisingly, he was still allowed to paint. After his release in 1944 he reinstalled himself in his Paris studio, not returning to Canada until 1973. He was a fine printmaker as well as a painter, and the National Gallery of Canada’s collection has three of his still life prints. Beaulieu’s still lifes show the influence of Pablo Picasso, as seen in the colourful and vivacious Nature morte, with its modernist approach to a classic subject. In this fine painting, Beaulieu plays with space with verve, twisting and tilting planes, and defining form with sculptural solidity. While in Paris, he continued to show in Canada at the Dominion Gallery, but also internationally in New York, Mexico City and Rio de Janeiro. His work is in international museum collections such as the Bezalel Museum in Jerusalem and the Museum of Modern Art in Paris.

All prices are in Canadian Dollars