Ozias Leduc


Ozias Leduc was a Canadian painter who was an early painter in Quebec. He produced portraits and landscapes. According to Laurier Lacroix, he was the first Canadian artist who can be seen as a philosopher as well as a painter.

Biography

Leduc was born in Saint-Hilaire-de-Rouville. He was mainly self-taught. Around 1880, he worked with Luigi Cappello, an Italian painter, on church decorations. Around 1881, he was employed at Carli, a manufacturer of statues in Montreal. Around 1883, he worked with Adolphe Rho, decorating another church, this time in Yamachiche. After that, he started working on his own on church decorations. Leduc made a brief trip to Paris and London in 1897 with Suzor-Coté, where he was influenced by the Impressionists.
Leduc lived a very solitary life in his home town and was dubbed "the sage of St-Hilaire". He received an Honorary doctorate from the Université de Montréal in 1938. He was made a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. His legacy includes teaching Paul-Émile Borduas. He died in Saint-Hyacinthe in 1955.

Works

He is best known for his work decorating the Notre-Dame-de-la-Présentation church in Shawinigan South, Quebec, a project which took him thirteen years, until his death. The work was completed by his assistant, Gabrielle Messier. Notre-Dame-de-la-Présentation church was designated a National Historic Site in 2004 and a federal marker reflecting that status was erected at the church in 2005.

Recognition

On May 20, 1988, Canada Post issued 'The Young Reader, Ozias Leduc, 1894' in the Masterpieces of Canadian art series. The stamp was designed by Pierre-Yves Pelletier based on a painting The Young Student by Ozias Leduc in the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario. The painting shows the Ozias Leduc's younger brother, concentrating on a picture book, pencil in hand. The 50¢ stamps are perforated 13 X 13.5 and were printed by British American Bank Note Company.
Leduc was named a National Historic Person on January 12, 2018. There are streets named after him in Shawinigan-Sud and Drummondville, a park in Lévis and a secondary school in Mont-Saint-Hilaire.

Record sale prices

At the Cowley Abbott Auction of An Important Private Collection of Canadian Art – Part III, December 6, 2023, lot 112, Leduc's Les foins, 1901, oil on canvas, 24 x 36 ins, Auction Estimate: $60,000.00 - $80,000.00 realized a price of $288,000.00.

Images and galleries

  • from the Canadian government's project.
  • from the .
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Information

  • from the Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec.
  • on 's project.
  • from the .
  • and information on The Young Reader from related to a stamp displaying that painting.
  • of Ozias Leduc and his work on the Notre-Dame-de-la-Présentation church.

Criticism and interpretation