Shore, Ste. Flavie

Shore, Ste. Flavie

Oil on canvas, 8x24

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We passed through Ste. Flavie on our way to the hotel we'd reserved at the Quebec Information Center, and both of us said we wished we were staying there. And so the next night, we did.

We stayed at a place called the Centre d'Art de Marcel Gagnon, and it was a treat for all the senses.

Marcel, who is still living, is a prolific artist. The walls of the hotel, inside and out, are covered with his art - paintings, mosaics, odd characters. There's a gallery inside, and a shop, all filled with paintings and poems by Marcel, his two sons and one daughter-in-law.

Most amazing of all was "Le Grand Rassemblement," a collection of more than 80 sculptures, some on the sidewalk by the parking lot, and the rest in a rambling sort of line, coming out of the water onto the beach. The ones that are farthest out are under water at high tide. 

The statues are mostly people - about human size, but without arms or legs. They are made of cement and have interesting faces, sort of blank, sort of expressive. There are a couple non-humans, including a lamb whose face is buried in the grass, while he eats his fill.

The statues are really fun, a little eerie, a little odd, and entirely fascinating. When I made this painting, I was standing near some of the statues. I thought about painting them, but they would be truly inexplicable in a painting.