1970 Lithograph by Jean-Paul Riopelle "Hibou" (Owl)

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Original lithograph "Hibou" (Owl) by Jean-Paul Riopelle published in 1970 by Maeght Éditeur for Derrière Le Miroir, and printed in … Read more Original lithograph "Hibou" (Owl) by Jean-Paul Riopelle published in 1970 by Maeght Éditeur for Derrière Le Miroir, and printed in by atelier Arte, one of the most renowned printmakers in history, producing prints of the highest quality. Sheet size: 15 x 11 inches. Mint condition from a complete, new old stock issue of Derrière Le Miroir.

Jean-Paul Riopelle (1923–2002), was one of the most important Canadian and Québécois artists of the 20th century. A painter, sculptor, and printmaker, he became internationally known for energetic abstract paintings characterized by thick, brilliantly colored applications of paint. During the 1950s, Riopelle developed the style for which he is perhaps best known. Instead of applying paint with conventional brushes, he often used a palette knife to build up dense patches of brightly colored paint, creating what became known as his “mosaic” paintings. The resulting surfaces are highly textured, luminous, and full of movement. His work was exhibited internationally. He represented Canada at the Venice Biennale in 1954 and 1962, and in 1954 the Museum of Modern Art in New York acquired his work.

Although Riopelle is frequently described as an abstract painter, nature was central to his imagination. His paintings often evoke forests, snow, ice, birds, water, weather, and the landscapes of Quebec without necessarily depicting them literally. Over his career he moved repeatedly between abstraction and recognizable imagery rather than adhering to a single style. From the 1960s onward, animals and birds became increasingly important subjects. He also experimented extensively with sculpture, lithography, printmaking, spray paint, bronze, and mixed media, producing more than 400 original prints.

Beginning in the late 1960s, Riopelle spent increasingly more time in Quebec. In 1974, he built a home and studio at Sainte-Marguerite-du-Lac-Masson in the Laurentians. His monumental fountain sculpture La Joute was installed in Montreal in 1976 and remains one of his best-known public works. One of his greatest late works is L'Hommage à Rosa Luxemburg, a monumental triptych created in the early 1990s. It demonstrates his continuing experimentation with color, gesture, scale, and mixed techniques.

Riopelle helped bring Quebec and Canadian modern art onto the international stage. His importance lies not only in his famous abstract “mosaic” paintings, but in his lifelong refusal to remain stylistically fixed. His work continually connected abstraction, landscape, animals, gesture, and the natural environment, making him a central figure in Canadian modernism. When he died in 2002, the Quebec government held a state funeral in his honor. See less