I met Hélène Montpetit in the early ’90s. She was a mature student at Concordia when I was teaching voice there. She had already been performing for some time and resisted technical voice training somewhat, saying she preferred to sing from the heart. The day she taught me how to use the fancy copy machine in the music department office was the start of a wonderful friendship.
Hélène is a twin. She grew up bilingual in a family of eight, surrounded by grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. That sense of belonging and connection might be why she is a figurative painter. Her people look real and rather humble—not perfect, not prettified. Just the basic human being, often crumpled… as is.
Over the past few years, I have seen her develop a career in visual arts. I have watched bare outlines emerge and transform into a compelling, fanciful figure in a park surrounded by birds! It’s fascinating and intimate to watch an artist’s process like this.
A couple of years ago, Hélène did my portrait. I liked how it revealed a part of myself that is not often seen. I now use it as my profile picture on social media.
-Written by Barbara Lewis, Singer, Vocal Coach
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Which ’hood are you in?
After growing up in Lachine-Dorval and living for over a decade in beautiful Verdun, I relocated to Sainte-Geneviève–Île-Bizard a few years ago.
What do you do?
I paint and draw, mostly people. I use graphite, pastel, ink, watercolour, and acrylics. Beginning with a photograph as reference, I let each piece evolve according to what I feel. What emerges is an interpretation rather than a copy. On good days, this results in an image that resonates and brings out a universal aspect of our human experience—an attitude, an emotion to which we can all relate.
What are you currently working on?
I have two projects on the go right now. The first is Memories, Real and Imagined. It is a bit of nostalgia, a reflection on what it was like to be raised in Quebec in the ’50s and early ’60s. I am almost done and hope to find a space to exhibit by the end of the year.
The second is the Fudgesicle/Apocalypse series, which I began some time ago. It is an ambitious, long-term project that I am constantly reworking. A departure for me, it carries a message. Its arc explores the progression of our attitudes toward our impact on the planet—from indifference to awareness, to the changes we can make to live in more sustainable ways.
Where can we find your work?
My website, of course—but Peace Poppies, a watercolour sketch I did while exploring possibilities for the Fudgesicle/Apocalypse series, is part of the new Vaudreuil-Dorion Viva Vida Gallery and Art Centre’s Inaugural Exhibition. Two more pieces, Intrepid and Largesse, are currently part of The Great Canadian Art Show, organized by Paul Constable of Artists in Canada.
