Claude Roussel

Claude Roussel (born 1930), is a Canadian sculptor, painter and educator. He is considered a pioneer of modern sculpture in Acadia.

For the French Olympic bobsledder, see Claude Roussel (athlete).
One of Roussel's best known works, Escuminac Disaster Memorial at Escuminac, New Brunswick

Biography

Education

Born Claude Patrice Roussel in Edmundston, New Brunswick, he began carving in wood by age 10. He showed his work publicly at age 17.[1]

He studied sculpture with Paul Carmel Laporte, a visual arts pioneer in Madawaska. After a few years of work, he studied from 1950 to 1956 at École des beaux-arts de Montréal in Montreal, where he obtained a teaching degree and another in sculpture.[1]

In Edmundston, he became the first artist in the province to provide art education in French public schools.[2] He later became assistant curator of the Beaverbrook Art Gallery in Fredericton (1959 to 1961). In this period, he sculpted his first monumental work, The Two Beavers, presented to Lord Beaverbrook by the Government of New Brunswick on the occasion of his 80th birthday.[1]

In 1961, a special grant from the Canada Council for the Arts allowed Roussel to travel to Europe, where he took particular interest in architectural decoration in England, France and Italy.[1]

University of Moncton

A second grant in 1963 allowed him to become an artist-in-residence at the University of Moncton.[2] He founded the Department of Visual Arts and the same year[1] and the university art gallery in 1965.[2] He organized two exhibitions of works by Acadian artists, Selection 65 and Selection 67. He led the department from 1963 to 1971 and from 1976 to 1979.[1]

He became a member of the Maritime Education Foundation and the Jack Chambers Memorial Foundation. He was chairman of Louise-et-Reuben-Cohen acquisition fund for the Art Gallery of the University of Moncton until 1991.[1] He founded Canadian Artists Representation (CARFAC), of which he was president from 1971 to 1976.

Retirement

He taught at the university until his retirement in February 1992 and, since then, has been entirely dedicated to working in his studio in Cap-Pelé.

Style inspirations

Claude Roussel was inspired by the work of Paul Carmel Laporte, as were others of his students.[3] For example, Back to Health is reminiscent of Laporte's sculpture in the first surgery in Saint-Basile, while Courage and Dedication inspired Roussel's model for the Escuminac Disaster Monument.[4]

Notable works

Roussel has been exhibited at more than 200 solo and group shows in Canada and internationally. His artworks are found in many countries but especially in Canada's eastern provinces.[1] Roussel has created more than 60 monumental and public art sculptures, twelve of which are listed below.[2]

  • Beavers, 1959, limestone, Officer's Square, Fredericton, New Brunswick
  • Fishermen's Monument, 1969, limestone, Escuminac Disaster Monument Provincial Historic Site, New Brunswick
  • Éros, 1971, welded Corten steel, Université de Moncton, Moncton, New Brunswick
  • Progression, 1972, fiberglass, City Hall of Saint John, New Brunswick
  • Atlantic, 1976, steel and epoxy, Summer Olympics Games XXI, City of Kingston, Ontario
  • Brûlez et détruisez tout, 1986, polyester paste, Grand-Pré National Historic Site, Nova Scotia
  • Dina Bolts, 1988, XXIV Summet Olympic Sculpture Garden, Seoul, South Korea[5]
  • Monument Père Clément-Cormier, 1990, bronze casting, Université de Moncton, Moncton, New Brunswick
  • Moncton 100 Monument, 1990, bronze, steel and granite, Moncton, New Brunswick
  • Transition 2000, 1999, welded brass and copper, UNI Coopération financière, Moncton, New Brunswick
  • Monument Mère Marie Léonie, 2004, bronze casting, Memramcook, New Brunswick
  • Inspire-Action, 2017, welded steel, City of Dieppe, New Brunswick

Distinctions
  • 1964: Allied Arts Medal of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada
  • 1967: Centennial Medal
  • 1972: Knight of the Order of the Pléiade
  • 1976: Symposium olympique
  • 1977: Commemorative Medal of the Queen
  • 1982: Medal of the Order of the Pléiade
  • 1984: Order of Canada
  • 1989: First Prize of the Marion McCain exhibit, Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Fredericton
  • 1992: Medal for the 125th anniversary of Canada
  • 2002: Order of New Brunswick[6]
  • 2005: Lieutenant Governor's prize for lifetime achievement

References
  1. "Biography Archived 2016-04-20 at the Wayback Machine" at "Artothèque: Overview of contemporary art in Acadia", Galerie d'art Louise-et-Reuben-Cohen, University of Moncton
  2. "Sculptors: reliefs of artisans" Toucherdubois.ca
  3. Patrick Condon Laurette, 1993, Claude Roussel emphasized: Retrospective 1944-1993
  4. "Dina Bolts (디나볼즈) - Olympic Park - Seoul, Korea - Abstract Public Sculptures on Waymarking.com". www.waymarking.com. Retrieved 2018-03-13.
  5. Canada, Government of New Brunswick. "Complete List of Recipients". www2.gnb.ca. Retrieved 2018-03-13.

Further reading
  • Herménégilde Chiasson, Patrick Condon Laurette, Claude Roussel: sculptor, Moncton, NB: Éditions d'Acadie, 1987. ISBN 2-7600-0115-6
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