Valentin Gallery is an art gallery in Quebec. Created in 1934, it was first called "L'Art français" and had its start on Laurier Street in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. Owners Lucienne (1900-1992) and Louis (1890-1956) Lange initially showed works by

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

artists. By the 1940s they were offering art by

Marc-Aurèle Fortin Marc-Aurèle Fortin (; March 14, 1888 – March 2, 1970) was a Québécois painter, known best for paintings that convey the charm of small-town Quebec. Career Marc-Aurèle Fortin was born in 1888 in Ste-Rose, Quebec, son of Thomas Fortin. ...

and Philip Surrey.Bernard Mendelman, "Two Montreal galleries celebrate milestones", The Suburban, 19 October 1994, A-26 In 1975, Jean-Pierre Valentin purchased the gallery. The gallery moved to its present

Sherbrooke Street Sherbrooke Street (officially in ) is a major east–west artery and at in length, is the second longest street on the Island of Montreal, Canada. The street begins in the town of Montreal West, Quebec, Montreal West and ends on the extreme ...

location laterLolly Golt, "Dealing in the Fine" in Montreal Living, p. 37 and changed the name to Valentin Gallery.

Galerie L'Art français

In the beginning, L'Art français was a shop selling frames and reproductions of French paintings. The owners were Louis and Lucienne Lange, who came to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

in 1930. Louis was from

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and Lucienne from France. They were ready to go back to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

when they decided to open the framing gallery on Laurier Avenue, incorporating print sales for better access to the public. Through the framing activity, they started meeting artists who came there to have their paintings framed. In 1936, the first show by Quebec artist Fleurimont Constantineau was the starting point in a non-stop series of exhibitions. Mr. Lange then decided to travel to Europe, especially to France and Belgium, in order to buy paintings. The gallery also exhibited young

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

painters."L'Art Français in Montreal", Gallery Profile, in ''Le Collectionneur'', Vol.1, n°2, 1978 While it opened with a stock entirely from France, World War II interrupted importations so it went Canadian. In 1943 and 1944 two solo exhibitions of Henri Masson and the first solo of

René Richard René Richard (1 December 1895 – 31 March 1982) was a Swiss-born Canadian painter known for his semi-abstract landscapes of the Canadian wilderness and of the country around Baie-Saint-Paul in Quebec. Early years René Jeanrichard (later shorte ...

were held. Sculptures by

Jordi Bonet Jordi Bonet, known professionally as Jordi Bonet (7 May 1932 – 25 December 1979), was a Spain, Spanish-born Canadians, Canadian painting, painter, ceramic art, ceramist, muralist, and sculpture, sculptor who worked principally in Quebec. Life ...

were also exhibited. In the 1950s, painters such as John Little were regularly exhibited. Canadian painters were now the main feature of exhibitions at L'Art français. The Lange also sold the paintings of painters such as Adrien Hébert, Suzor-Côté,

Alfred Laliberté Alfred Laliberté (19 May 1877 – 13 January 1953) was a French-Canadian sculptor and painter based in Montreal. His output includes more than 900 sculptures in bronze, marble, wood, and plaster. Many of his sculptures depict national figure ...

, Clarence Gagnon, Horatio Walker,

Cornelius Krieghoff Cornelius David Krieghoff (June 19, 1815 – March 5, 1872) was a Dutch-born Canadian-American painter of the 19th century. He is best known for his paintings of Canadian genre scenes involving landscapes and outdoor life, which were as s ...

, Coburn, Lyman,

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

, and also abstract surrealist works by Riopelle, Pellan,

Borduas Borduas is a provincial electoral district in the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec. It notably includes the municipality of Beloeil, Mont-Saint-Hilaire and Otterburn Park. It was creat ...

, and

Jean Dallaire Jean-Philippe Dallaire (9 June 1916 – 27 November 1965) was one of the leading artists working figuratively in the 1960s in Canada. He is known for his festive scenes peopled by macabre characters. Early years Jean-Philippe Dallaire was born in ...

. In 1956, Mr. Lange died and his wife decided to carry on. She exhibited Miyuki Tanobe. During these years, Stanley Cosgrove,

Ozias Leduc Ozias Leduc (October 8, 1864 - June 16, 1955) is one of Quebec's early painters. He was born in Saint-Hilaire-de-Rouville. Leduc produced many portraits and landscapes. Biography Leduc was mainly self-taught. Around 1880, he worked with Luigi ...

Paul Soulikias Paleologos Soulikias (Παλαιολόγος Σουλικιάς; 13 October 1926 – 17 January 2023) was a Greek-Canadian artist painter, known primarily for his Canadian landscape scenes. Biography Soulikias was born in Komotini, Greece on 13 ...

and Goodridge Roberts exhibited their works here."Gallery Jean-Pierre Valentin" in ''Parcours'', Vol.2, n°2, March 1996-March 1997 The gallery exhibited also Henri Masson, Berthe des Clayes, Edmund Alleyn, Ghitta Caiserman, P.V Beaulieu, Lismer, Borenstein, Pilot,

Emily Carr Emily Carr (December 13, 1871 – March 2, 1945) was a Canadian artist who was inspired by the monumental art and villages of the First Nations and the landscapes of British Columbia. She also was a vivid writer and chronicler of life in her sur ...

, Brymner, Cullen, Franchère, Adrien Hébert, Massicotte, Plamondon, John Young Johnstone, Bourassa, Laliberté and Henri Julien.

Valentin Gallery

Since the early 1970s, the gallery exhibits Miyuki Tanobe, young Canadian painters and more "classical" painters such as Marc-Aurèle Fortin. The

Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec The Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec (), abbreviated as MNBAQ, is an art museum in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The museum is located in National Battlefields Park and is a complex of four buildings. Three of them were purpose-built for ...

had access to the Fortin's research resources for an exhibition about the artist. The gallery also helps tracking down works in private collections for exhibitions in museums. Instead of focusing on French art, the gallery forged ahead by choosing to display Québécois and Canadian artists like Lemieux, Riopelle, Suzor-Coté. Retrospective exhibitions were held with artists such as Philip Surrey,

Molinari Molinari is an Italian language occupational surname for a miller. Notable people with this surname include: * Adriana Molinari, American (née Argentine) pornographic actress * Alberto Molinari (born 1965), Italian actor, producer, and director ...

, Dallaire, Borduas, Lyman. The gallery also exhibits young sculptors and painters such as Christian Deberdt, Geneviève Jost, Élène Gamache et Pearl Levy, Jeannette Perreault, Maja Vodanovic, Henry Wanton Jones, Stanislav Germanov, Thérèse Lacasse, Guylaine Beauchemin. At each anniversary the gallery presents a selection of Canada classics.

Jean-Pierre Valentin

Born in France in 1949, he is a master in International Trade after studies in a

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

commerce school. He was a Paris-based art dealer who travelled the world selling works of art. In 1977, he occupied a position on the Board of Trustees of the Professional Art Dealers Association of Canada. In 1981, he became the youngest president and was re-elected in 1983. He has given conferences on how to build an art collection and on how to invest in art, on the importance of a good appraisal and on the works of Marc-Aurèle Fortin.''Montreal print collectors society. Newsletter'', Vol. 15, n°5, February 1999 He is working on a catalogue raisonné of this artist.

References

External links

Valentin Gallery
{{Authority control Art museums and galleries in Quebec History of Montreal 1934 establishments in Quebec Art museums and galleries established in 1934