{{Short description|Art in Acadia}} '''Acadian art''' was developed over more than four centuries.<ref group="note">Acadia roughly comprises the northern and eastern parts of the Canadian province of New Brunswick, as well as more isolated communities in Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Nova Scotia. In a broader sense, Acadia also refers to the Acadian diaspora communities in Quebec and the United States; people of Acadian descent can also be found in France, the Falkland Islands and the West Indies. Acadia is not officially recognized, but is said to form a nation through its language, culture, institutions and symbols.</ref> Socio-economic conditions and then the Grand Dérangement long prevented Acadians from producing a large number of works of art. The oral tradition remained strong until the 1960s, when culture began to diversify.
==History== === Enpremier === [[File:The First Play in Canada, 1606.JPG|thumb|Presentation of the ''Théâtre de Neptune'' facing the Port-Royal dwelling. Drawing by Charles William Jefferys.]] The empremier period, that is, the period of Acadian history before 1755, has few artists whose work has survived to the present day, and no professional organizations.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Condom Laurette |first=Patrick |title=L'Acadie des Maritimes |publisher=Centre d'études acadiennes, Université de Moncton |year=1993 |isbn=2921166062 |editor-last=Daigle |editor-first=Jean |location=Moncton |pages=789–844 |language=fr |trans-title=Acadia of the Maritimes |chapter=Aspects historique de l'art en Acadie |trans-chapter=Historical aspects of art in Acadia}}</ref> Marc Lescarbot, however, produced the first literary texts in North America in 1606.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Bolduc |first=Yves |title=Culture de l'Acadie |trans-title=Culture of Acadia |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/fr/article/culture-de-lacadie |access-date=2025-01-24 |website=L'Encyclopédie canadienne |language=fr}}</ref> Visitors such as Biard, Chrestien Le Clercq, Denys, Dièreville, Maillard and Bourg went on to write about the geography, flora and fauna of Acadia.<ref name=":1" /> Religious figures such as Abbé Saint-Vallier wrote about religious and economic conditions.<ref name=":1" /> The slow pace of population growth and Acadia's strategic location, which led to numerous wars, explain why the number of texts produced in Acadia is not comparable to that of Canada or France.<ref name=":1" />
=== Deportation to renaissance === {{See also|Acadian folklore}} The deportation of the Acadians took place from 1755 to 1763, but the population did not fully recover until the 1820s. Acadian culture and society were slowly rebuilt, a period sometimes referred to as the Hundred Years in the Woods, with no literature but a flourishing oral tradition that has left stories, legends and songs to this day.<ref name=":1" /> A school system began to take shape in the mid-19th century, and Collège Saint-Joseph was founded in Memramcook in 1854.<ref name=":1" /> Its graduates became actively involved in their community and, aided by the clergy, were concerned with their identity and aspirations in a society now dominated by a majority of Anglo-Protestants.<ref name=":1" />
{{Gallery |title= |width=160 | height=170 |align=center |footer= |File:A View of the Plundering and Burning of the City of Grymross, by Thomas Davies, 1758.JPG |View of the sacking and burning of the city of Grimrose, the only known contemporary depiction of the deportation of the Acadians, by Thomas Davies, 1758. |alt1= |File:Pierre Douville.png |Portrait of Pierre Douville (1745-1794), deported at the age of 13. Painted around 1790, this is one of the few known portraits of a survivor of the deportation. |alt2= }}
=== Renaissance to 1950s === The takeover of society, the economy and politics by graduates of Collège Saint-Joseph and the clergy was revived by the Acadian National Conventions, the first of which was held in Memramcook in 1881.<ref name=":1" /> The nationalist debate, inspired by the works of {{ILL|François-Edme Rameau de Saint-Père|fr}} and stimulated by Quebec clergy, dominated literature until 1966.<ref name=":1" /> Present in priests' sermons, discussions and the media - ''L'Évangéline'' and ''Le Moniteur acadien'' - the debate encompassed politics, economics and society.<ref name=":1" /> The rediscovery of their history inspires Acadians, an area where Pascal Poirier stands out in his writings.<ref name=":1" /> The nationalist debate dominates cultural production, while seeking to heal the trauma of the Acadian deportation and redefine Acadian identity.<ref name=":1" />
Strictly speaking, there was no social class that could afford patronage until the Acadian Renaissance of the 19th century, when the clergy took on this role.<ref name=":0" />
Until the beginning of the 20th century, sculpture and painting were mainly carried out by church decorators, some of them self-taught. Among the principal works still in existence are those of Philomène Belliveau, Caroline Léger, Anna Bourque-Bourgeois, Jeanne Léger, Alma Buote and Yolande Boudreau, all of whom studied art abroad.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Charette |first=Luc A. |title=Culture de l'Acadie: Peinture et sculpture |trans-title=Culture of Acadia: Painting and sculpture |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/fr/article/culture-de-lacadie |access-date=2025-01-24 |website=L'Encyclopédie canadienne |language=fr}}</ref> {{ILL|Sainte-Anne-de-Kent Church|fr|Église Sainte-Anne de Sainte-Anne-de-Kent}}, which included paintings by Édouard Gautreau, was nicknamed the “Sistine Chapel of Acadia” until it was destroyed by fire in 2007.<ref name=":2" /> From the 1930s onwards, Quebec physician Paul Carmel Laporte taught sculpture and drawing in Edmundston and trained several artists, including Claude Picard, Claude Roussel and {{ILL|Marie Hélène Allain|fr}}.<ref name=":2" />
{{Gallery |title= |width=160 | height=170 |align=center |footer= |File:Portrait Philomène Belliveau.jpg |<nowiki>Philomène Belliveau.]]</nowiki> |alt1= |File:Paul Carmel Laporte 1.jpg |Paul Carmel Laporte. |alt2= }}
thumb|150x150px|Acadian lady making a rug, 1938. The rug hooking technique was introduced in Chéticamp after 1875 and commercialized around 1923 by the American Lillian Burke. Most designs were mass-produced, but some hookers, such as Elizabeth Lefort, made a name for themselves with murals such as The Last Supper.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Les Acadiens des Maritimes |publisher=Centre d'études acadiennes, Université de Moncton |year=1980 |editor-last=Roussel |editor-first=Brigitte |location=Moncton |language=fr |trans-title=Maritime Acadians |chapter=Les arts visuels |trans-chapter=Visual arts |editor-last2=Roussel |editor-first2=Claude |editor-last3=Daigle |editor-first3=Jean}}</ref>
=== 1950s to 1980s === The nationalist debate is no longer central to Acadian thought, as the very existence of the Acadian community is no longer in question.<ref name=":1" /> Against the backdrop of the radical movements of the 1960s, the Quiet Revolution in Quebec and Louis Robichaud's Equal Opportunity program, the ''Rassemblement des jeunes'' in 1966 challenged the nationalist debate and rejected traditional Acadian culture.<ref name=":1" /> Student strikes and ''nuits de la poésie'' (poetry nights) also encouraged this movement, as did the great success of Antonine Maillet's ''La Sagouine'', the popularity of ''chansonniers'', the publication of young authors and the founding of {{ILL|Éditions d'Acadie|fr}}.<ref name=":1" /> During this period of “return to Beaubassin”, Acadian artists from the North moved to Moncton, a situation explained by the presence of the studios of the Société Radio-Canada and the National Film Board, but above all by the influence of the Université de Moncton.<ref name=":0" /> This movement continued into the 1980s, but despite some cinematic successes, censorship, funding problems and commercialism took their toll.<ref name=":0" />
According to Patrick Condom Laurette and Claude Roussel, Acadia's political situation and the folkloric nature of its art leave little room for the future.<ref name=":0" /> Moreover, a residual aspect of Acadia as popular culture, represented by works such as ''Evangéline'', sometimes still inspires artists, notably Antonine Maillet with ''Évangéline Deusse'' (1975) and Roméo Savoie with his painting ''Seal of Approval'' (1978) and his poem ''Eurydice voyeuse'' (1981).<ref name=":0" /> In 1982, the same artist confronted nothingness with ''The Great Acadian Fan'' (1982).<ref name=":0" /> On the other hand, a “certain style” of anti-modernism, “folkesque” in appearance, inspired by commercial concern and the media, derived from the work of 19th-century Quebec religious painters and later woodcarvers, inspired sculptors such as Claude Roussel and Raymond Martin.<ref name=":0" /> The 1980s were a decade of malaise for many Acadians, and the 1981 exhibition ''Acadia Nova'' marked the beginning of a period when artists were "de-Acadianizing" their work, for, in the words of Philippe Doucet, “the child that Acadia had been for several centuries had now passed the stage of adolescence”.<ref name=":0" />
It was not until the 1960s that genuine patronage initiatives were undertaken, although the Church of Christ the King, designed in 19?? by Yvon Roy in Moncton, prefigured this period.<ref name=":0" />
Claude Roussel set up the visual arts department at the Université de Moncton in 1963, providing structured training for artists.<ref name=":0" /> The university's rector, Clément Cormier, tried to “get Acadians out of their little folkloric remnant”.<ref name=":0" /> At the same time, many artists, including Gertrude Godbout, Eulalie Boudreau, René Hébert, Georges Goguen, Roméo Savoie, Hilda Lavoie-Frachon and Claude Gauvin, were still required to take outside courses before pursuing their careers in Acadia.<ref name=":2" /> Some, including Claude Picard and Ernest Cormier, created religious paintings and murals for churches.<ref name=":2" /> Marie-Hélène Allain's environmental stone sculptures are displayed in many public buildings. Nelson Surette makes a name for himself with paintings depicting daily life.<ref name=":2" /> Adrien Arsenault is also well known.<ref name=":2" /> {{ILL|Nérée De Grâce|fr}} draws her inspiration from Acadian folklore, and her paintings can be found in collections around the world, as well as on a 1981 stamp.<ref name=":2" /> Canadian museums hold works by other artists, the best-known of whom are sculptors Arthur Gallant, Alfred Morneault and Octave Verret, and painters Léo B. LeBlanc, Médard Cormier and Camille Cormier.<ref name=":2" />
=== 1980s to present === The Université de Moncton art gallery opened in 1980, at a time when many artists were still based in Montreal or Halifax.<ref name=":0" />
In 1987, Claude Picard and Claude Roussel created the paintings and bas-reliefs for the Grand-Pré National Historic Site.<ref name=":2" /> A new generation of artists took their place, inspired by modern concerns as well as other subjects: Paul-Édouard Bourque, Jacques Arseneault, Francis Coutellier, Marc Cyr, Pierre Noël LeBlanc, Anne-Marie Sirois, Lucille Robichaud, Lionel Cormier, Luc A. Charette, Daniel Dugas, Guy Duguay, Roger Vautour, Ghislaine McLaughlin, Gilles LeBlanc, Georges Blanchette, Gilles Arsenault, Hélène LaRoche and André Lapointe.<ref name=":2" /> In addition to film, literature and theater, Herménégilde Chiasson is also a distinguished painter. {{ILL|Yvon Gallant|fr}} is another well known Acadian painter.<ref name=":2" /> Robert Saucier, Jocelyn Jean and Paul-Émile Saulnier are considered Acadian artists, even though they decided to settle in Quebec.<ref name=":2" />
In 1990, the Croix-Bleue company censored Luc Charette's ''Stairway to Heaven'', showing a crucifix on a fighter plane.<ref name=":0" />
== See also == * Acadian culture * History of the Acadians * Acadian folklore * Acadieman * Société Nationale de l'Acadie
== Notes == {{References list|group=note}}
== References == {{References list}}
== Bibliography ==
* {{Cite book |last=Dupont |first=Jean-Claude |title=Héritage d'Acadie |publisher=Leméac |year=1977 |location=Montreal |language=fr |trans-title=Heritage of Acadia}} * {{Cite book |last=Dupont |first=Jean-Claude |title=Histoire populaire de l'Acadie |publisher=Leméac |year=1978 |isbn=2-7609-5278-9 |location=Montreal |language=fr |trans-title=Popular historty of Acadia}} * {{Cite book |last=Gair |first=Revley |title=Langues et littératures au Nouveau-Brunswick : survol historique |publisher=Éditions d'Acadie |year=1986 |isbn=2-7600-0129-6 |location=Moncton |language=fr |trans-title=Languages and Literatures in New Brunswick: A Historical Overview}} * {{Cite book |last1=Gallant |first1=Janine |title=Dictionnaire des œuvres littéraires de l'Acadie des maritimes du XXe siècle |last2=Raymond |first2=Maurice |publisher=Prise de parole |year=2012 |isbn=978-2-89423-241-5 |location=Sudbury |language=fr |trans-title=Dictionary of Maritime Acadian Literary Works of the 20th Century}} * {{Cite book |last=Jolicoeur |first=Catherine |title=Les plus belles légendes acadiennes |publisher=Stanké |year=1980 |location=Montreal |language=fr |trans-title=The most beautiful Acadian legends}} * {{Cite book |title=En r'montant la tradition : hommage au père Anselme Chiasson |publisher=Éditions d'Acadie |year=1982 |editor-last=Labelle |editor-first=Ronald |location=Moncton |language=fr |trans-title=Building on tradition: a tribute to Father Anselme Chiasson |editor-last2=Léger |editor-first2=Lauraine}} * {{Cite book |last=Condom Laurette |first=Patrick |title=L'Acadie des Maritimes |publisher=Centre d'études acadiennes, Université de Moncton |year=1993 |isbn=2921166062 |editor-last=Daigle |editor-first=Jean |location=Moncton |pages=789–844 |language=fr |trans-title=Acadia of the Maritimes |chapter=Aspects historique de l'art en Acadie |trans-chapter=Historical aspects of art in Acadia}} * {{Cite book |last=Lonergan |first=David |title=Paroles d'Acadie : Anthologie de la littérature acadienne (1958-2009) |publisher=Prise de parole |year=2010 |isbn=978-2-89423-256-9 |location=Sudbury |language=fr |trans-title=Words from Acadia: Anthology of Acadian literature (1958-2009)}} * {{Cite book |last=Maillet |first=Marguerite |title=Histoire de la littérature acadienne : de rêve en rêve |publisher=Éditions d'Acadie |year=1983 |location=Moncton |language=fr |trans-title=History of Acadian literature: from dream to dream}} * {{Cite book |last1=Maillet |first1=Marguerite |title=Anthologie de textes littéraires acadiens : 1606-1975 |last2=Leblanc |first2=Gérald |last3=Emont |first3=Bernard |publisher=Éditions d'Acadie |year=1992 |isbn=2-7600-0228-4 |location=Moncton |language=fr |trans-title=Anthology of Acadian literary texts: 1606-1975}} * {{Cite book |last=Plantier |first=René |title=Le corps du déduit : Neuf études sur la poésie acadienne, 1980-1990 |publisher=Éditions d'Acadie |year=1996 |isbn=978-2-7600-0291-3 |location=Moncton |language=fr |trans-title=The body of the deduced: Nine Studies on Acadian Poetry, 1980-1990}} {{Acadia}}
Category:Acadian culture Category:Acadian history Category:History of art in Canada