 |
Jacques Lisée was born in Fontainbleau near Weedon (province of Quebec, Canada) in 1948. He has lived in Thetford Mines since 1955. He have been a sculptor of low relief for 25 years and a painter for 15 years. The talented and originality evident in his art amazes and charms viewers at the same time.
Over the years, he has succeeded in acheiving a perfect blend of woodcarving and painting and has created a new medium called the "Polychromatic Low Relief". At first, he carves his low relief on a wooden panel which he then paints with acrylics. With this unique artistic process, Jacques Lisée transcends the limits of his prefered element (wood), accentuating and highlighting the relief with contrasting colors.
With this new methodology, Jacques Lisée, more than any of his peers, has portrayed a special universe of fascinating figures. He portrays old people with captivating faces, colorful larger-than-life figures, caricatured scenes, cleverly distorted images. He has shown concern for detail through which he succeeds in maintaining a thematic unity that lends a unique style to each of his pieces.
His entire body of work reflects the absolutely irresistible simplicity and the joy of life. The artist has cleverly shown, in a new light, scenes like the country life, farm animals, domestic works and others daily scenes. With his inspired humor, he transformes these everyday life images, into a vast, refreshingly novel fresco.
His highly developed sense of observation and his hyperactive imagination give to his figures a comic dimension that makes us laugh and moves us at the same time, seducing the eye as much as the soul.
Claude Leclerc, vice-president
Trustar
 |
Another view of the artist and his work:
Caricature has taken a important place
in the world of art, especially since Honoré Daumier, in
the last century, marked it with his genius. Here in Canada, caricature
and cartoon were conceived and given birth in mass media like
large circulation papers.
In the past, cartoonists like Henri Julien, Albéric Bourgeois or Edmond J. Massicote, applied their talent to describe the habits and customs of their contemporaries, especially those from the rural districts of this land.
The work of the artist Jacques Lisée (from Thetford Mines) pursues the tradition of these great cartoonists. Moreover, he distinguishes himself by using wood carving to portray scenes familiar to him. His self-taught and spontaneous artistic expression are well matched with a jovial empathy for his subjects.
Marcel Masse, interim president
Commission des biens culturels du Québec
 |
Again, another appraisal of the Artist:
The artist we present here does not want to be known simply as an artisan. He is a self-taught wood carving artists who posesses an amazing creative facility. The low reliefs which come from his studio are unique and are spontaneously created and executed with the self-confidence of a master.
With a sense of humor and with an extraordinary gift for observation, Jacques demonstrates the qualities of a talented sculptor who recreates picturesque scenes with a outstanding originality. Furthermore the strong caricaturizations found in his works create an impression of movement and demostrate his keen sense of interpretation.
Jacques Lisée has acquired a enviable reputation in the circle of collectors and his works are well know in Canada and in the United States.
René Buisson, director
Musée Marc-Aurèle Fortin
 |
 |
A Magazine Review:
Since his childhood in his family's
grocery store, where he used all the cardboard boxes to draw frenetically
on imaginary subjects, the artist has remain faithful to himself.
An incursion into a drafting course didn't get the better of his
first intuition. He became an artist naturally.
Without any other motivation than an admiration for simple caricature like those of cartoonist Reiser (Pilote) and sculptor Giacometti, Jacques Lisée carves wood. He uses wood as platform for his own artistic expression. For him, sculpture in an integral part of human artistic expression. His works offer praise for the simple life and evoke everyday scenes, ones that fascinated him and speak about human interaction that everyone can comprehend. Each of his works is a "parcel of love" which he passionately wants to communicate to others.
Extrait _Le Collectionneur, no 34, Mai 1996
par Rosette PIPAR
 |
Jacques Lisée is represented by:
MultiArt Ltée
(Denis Beauchamp, exclusive agent)
652 Notre-Dame, Suite 200
Saint-Lambert, Québec (Canada)
J4P 2L1
(514) 466-8511
Jacques Lisée will be at the SYMPOSIUM DE PEINTURE DE LA 45e ÉDITION DU CARNAVAL DE QUÉBEC KELLOGGS, from February 10 to 14 1999, at Place Québec.
Jacques Lisée, artist
painter et sculptor
783 Chemin des Monts
Thetford Mines (Québec)
Canada
G6G 5R5
Phone: (418) 338-3368