{"id":14313,"date":"2017-09-15T12:42:56","date_gmt":"2017-09-15T16:42:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sothebysrealty.ca\/insightblog\/?p=14313"},"modified":"2017-09-21T12:43:16","modified_gmt":"2017-09-21T16:43:16","slug":"artists-play","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sothebysrealty.ca\/insightblog\/fr\/2017\/09\/15\/artists-play\/","title":{"rendered":"Artist’s Play"},"content":{"rendered":"

We live in a world of visual overload \u2014 millions upon millions of photos posted daily on social media, thousands by our own hands. Thankfully, Maude Arsenault provides some calm and reflection within the storm.<\/p>\n

A professional photographer who has worked largely in fashion in Canada, Australia and France, Arsenault started seeking an outlet for her less commercial art about seven or eight years ago. That\u2019s how, in April 2013, she found herself with two new \u201cbabies,\u201d as she calls them \u2014 her newborn son, Romain, and her online gallery, The Print Atelier. Almost 10 years after launching, The Print Atelier has on its roster about 25 established and emerging art photographers.<\/p>\n

It has become a full-time, absorbing pursuit for Arsenault, after almost 25 years as a commercial photographer shooting campaigns and editorials for clients ranging from Flare and Madame Figaro magazines to upscale fashion retailers Holt Renfrew and Ogilvy. \u201cI am more than a photographer, I am an artist,\u2019\u2019 says Arsenault, who is 44 years old. Yet, the proliferation of accomplished and beautiful photographs as part of our everyday lives begs the question: What makes a picture art, special or collectible? \u201cEverybody can take a pretty picture \u2014 that has no more value in a sense,\u2019\u2019 she says. \u201cNow, photography is not about the aesthetics. It\u2019s about the process and the intention. It\u2019s about the story behind it.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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I spoke with Arsenault on a rainy Monday afternoon in her new home, nestled behind a glorious magnolia tree in Montreal\u2019s tony Outremont neighbourhood. She had not yet fully unpacked, but large-scale art prints already adorned the walls \u2014 in the living room a romantic print of strewn white roses by Margo Ducharme, in the kitchen Sara A. Tremblay\u2019s black-and-white abstract, and in the dining room a diptych of her own work, titled La fin des e\u0301toiles and Irina.<\/p>\n

Arsenault was always interested in contemporary art and started collecting many years ago. A significant early buy was by Paul Fusco from the RFK Funeral Train series, now a valuable collectible. \u201cMy taste evolves, but I have never bought something that 20 years later I don\u2019t still love,\u2019\u2019 she notes.<\/p>\n

She fell into photography in the 1990s, meeting the fashion crowd while hanging out on Montreal\u2019s boulevard Saint-Laurent at such hot spots as Di Salvio\u2019s and the Shed. \u201cFashion was a diversion,\u2019\u2019 says Arsenault. \u201cI only cared about how I can use pieces to create a story and make a beautiful image.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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But it soon was time to remove herself from the commercial constraints of Montreal. In 2001 she headed to Australia, then on to Paris. \u201cMontreal was never the right market for me.\u201d Three years later, Arsenault returned to Montreal, after she became pregnant and needed the support of her family. That\u2019s when she decided that if she were to stay in Montreal, she would have find a way to get more involved in the art world. \u201cThere is nothing else in the world I am more passionate about than photography,\u2019\u2019 she says. \u201cI love print, I love paper, I love seeing a beautiful artwork \u2014 anything on paper.\u2019<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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One day the idea of an online gallery came to her. That was about 2011, and nothing like that existed at the time. It took several more years, and the difficult pregnancy with Romain, her third child, to get the gallery up and running. \u201cIt all came together. It was the perfect thing to do \u2014 lie on my couch and work on my computer,\u2019\u2019 she says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The gallery eventually took over and now consumes most of her time. She shoots just two or three days a month for KO Me\u0301dia publications like Ve\u0301ro magazine and Cuisine Fute\u0301e. \u201cThe balance of the two is perfect,\u2019\u2019 she says of her professional mix, adding she\u2019d like to shoot more. But for now, with three children and a film director husband who often travels, she can\u2019t do it all.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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For The Print Atelier, Arsenault represents artists whose work she herself would love to collect. Pressed on the difference between commercial and artistic work, Arsenault is firm. \u201cIt\u2019s impossible not to see the difference. An artist is trying to say something, express something.\u201d That may be something conceptual, environmental or a personal search, she says. \u201cFor me, commercial photography is dead. There is almost no future for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She can\u2019t say where photography and the constant documentation of everyday lives is heading. Her 13-year-old daughter \u201ctakes 3 million selfies a day,\u201d she notes. \u201cI find it really fascinating and quite worrisome.\u201d <\/p>\n

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Arsenault concedes, however, that a commercial piece can be art, too. \u201cA client can associate his name with an artist\u2019s work.\u201d And commercial works by Richard Avedon, Bruce Weber or Irving Penn, for instance, can become iconic \u2014 and collectible. She\u2019s personally inspired by renowned photographers such as Paolo Roversi, Peter Lindbergh and Mario Sorrenti.<\/p>\n

On the contemporary front, she admires Cass Bird, a lesbian whose work often explores gender issues. \u201cShe is a very interesting mix of fashion and art,\u2019\u2019 Arsenault says of Bird, who has shot everyone from the Obamas to Jessica Chastain and Pharrell Williams. \u201cHer work is lively. I wish I could be doing what she does \u2014 a mixture of very feminine and very boyish work. It\u2019s super-modern \u2014 a perfect modern vision of women and men right now.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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MAUDE’S TIPS<\/h2>\n

On Collecting Art Photography<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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BUY WHAT YOU LOVE: Collecting is not about investing. It\u2019s about loving and liv- ing with a piece of art. \u201cNobody in the art world believes that one should buy art just as an investment. Collecting art is a luxury,\u201d says Arsenault.<\/p>\n

TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS: \u201cThe best way to buy art is with your gut. You absolutely need to love the work. If you\u2019re lucky and make the right choice, it may turn out to be a good investment.\u201d<\/p>\n

THINK SMALL: Photography is more ac- cessible. Try to buy from small editions \u2014 under 30. The smaller the edition, the best chance you have to make a good return on investment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Artists at The Print Atelier Worth Watching<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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ALANA RILEY: \u201cHer work is based on the relationship between people and explores the idea of human encounters. One series showcases herself, dressed in a worker\u2019s uniform, in places like a grocery store. She is pictured with a worker literally on her back. \u201cHer work makes so much sense. It\u2019s so sensitive. It makes you reflect on the world, your community. Her whole body of work makes you think about your relation- ship with other people.\u201d<\/p>\n

DAVID ELLINGSEN: With his focus on the environment, Ellingsen reflects on issues like deforestation, climate change and waste. He lives between Victoria, Vancouver and the farm on the remote island of Cortes, in B.C., where he was raised. \u201cI love that he is working on environmental issues,\u2019\u2019 Arse- nault says, adding that his family history and connection to the Pacific Northwest makes his work even more powerful.<\/p>\n

LE PIGEON: Montreal-based Le Pigeon, whose real name is Jerry Pigeon, has an incredible ability to get into people, Arse- nault says. \u201cHis work depicts emotional and intrusive voyeuristic scenes, He gives you the opportunity to be in other people\u2019s pri- vate lives for an instant. He\u2019s made a bit of a scene for himself. He\u2019s a character.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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By Eva Friede – *This article originally appeared in INSIGHT: The Art of Living | Fall 2017<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Portrait by: Ariel Tarr<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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