Hurtubise, Jacques

A visionary Montreal painter, Jacques Hurtubise is one of the most dynamic figures in contemporary art in Canada. A tireless explorer of the boundaries of painting, he has developed an explosive body of work in which science, light, and gesture converge to create spaces of electric intensity.

Hurtubise’s entire career has been a quest to reconcile two worlds: rational structure (straight lines, geometry) and emotional impulse (splashes, stains). His aesthetic rejects staticness; he seeks to capture pure energy, often inspired by technological phenomena, neon lights, and electronic imagery. For him, the canvas is a field of forces in constant tension.

In his early years, he created geometric compositions with contrasting colors, executed with surgical precision. In the 1960s, he let his brushstrokes explode. He often used symmetry techniques (similar to Rorschach blots) where the paint seems to have been sprayed with kinetic force.

Toward the end of his life, his compositions became more complex, sometimes evoking masks or fantastical architectures born of the accumulation of repetitive gestures. Hurtubise is the artist who succeeded in synthesizing the rigor of the Plasticiens (such as Molinari) with the freedom of the Automatistes (such as Riopelle).