PROVENANCE
Estate of the Artist
Acquired from the above by the present Private Collection, Ontario

BIBLIOGRAPHIE
Ninon Gauthier, Catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre de Marcel Barbeau, 1990, catalogue #PE47

EXPOSITION
Galerie Dresdnere, Toronto, 1981
Galerie Dresdnere, Toronto, 1986
Galerie Jean-Claude Bergeron, Ottawa, 2000

In 1948, a few months prior to the publication of the Refus global manifesto, of which he was a signatory, Marcel Barbeau undertook the destruction of many paintings he had executed a year earlier. Although his friend the poet Claude Gauvreau considered these works revolutionary, Barbeau concluded they were not radical enough. Dents de sable à cran d’acier (Sand Teeth with Steel Notch) is one of a few rare works from 1947 that survived the purge. Also titled Le langage des sources (The Language of Origins), this work showcases Barbeau’s deft handling of the palette knife. Spirited and intense, it displays the Automatists’ radical and expressive approach to abstraction. All across its luminous white background, touches of black, crimson, orange and cobalt are pulled onto the canvas in swift diagonal swathes. The resulting surface is undeniably liberated and expressive, and showcases Barbeau’s remarkable range and quality of gestures. The dynamic composition keeps the viewer’s eye moving from one touch of colour to the next, and the artist’s energy is palpable throughout. Dents de sable à cran d’acier bears witness to a thrilling period in Barbeau’s career.

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