But destiny is always 'au rendez-vous'. In 1979, a lady knocked at the back door of our late XVIIIth century house. 'You are artists!' speaking at my wife, France Briere, and me, 'Don't you make paintings on silk?' Right away she offered us a place to exhibit our framed artwork on silk and silk scarves. The exposition was held in an old, round mill near the St. Laurent river in Vercheres, Quebec, Canada. So started my art adventure, my art career. In three days we sold all our production of 36 scarves and 20 paintings on silk.
After seven years of hard work, I finally joined the top professional art craft association in Montreal - La Centrale des Metiers dıart du Quebec (CMAQ) in the textiles section. And so, Mireault started to be renowned as a 'water-colourist on silk' and companies such as Bell Canada and Via Rail Canada used my artwork to give to important visitors and reproductions of my artwork were transformed into greetings cards. I realised some specific watercolours on silk for those corporations. My drawings are a possibility to illustrate almost anything.
After sixteen participations at Le Salon de Metiers d'Art de Montreal, a professional art/craft show I realise the public can now identify my artwork talking about my black lines (black gutta that remember me the colouring books), vivid colours and the silk. I gave so many explanations about this specific technique, I reassure so many people about the durability of the pigments on the silk, I repeat so many time the story of the silk road and how this art find itıs way to Quebec, that my name is now associated with painting on silk.
About ten years ago, I also thought about bringing painting on silk as a noble form of art. In the last century, watercolours on paper were neglected. Now the are considered as artworks. I intend, with other silk painters, to achieve this wonderful mission for the painting on silk or watercolour on silk in this beginning of a new century. I always present my paintings on silk in a classical way: framed with a double mat and glass. When they look at my artworks, people, in a first look, think they are watercolours on paper. They are intrigued by the brightness of the colours, the black line drawing, the silkiness surface.
Since, 1998, I am a silver medallist with the Cercle des Peintres et Sculpteurs du Quebec. That year, I participate at an exhibition with 350 other professional artists. They were oil painters, watercolourists, pastellists, mixed-media and me, a single silk painter! In 1999, I received the gold medal and last year, a trophy mentioning 'Great Honour'. It is a great victory in my quest of giving painting on silk his real place on the podium and on the 'cimaise' of galleries.
Last summer, exploring the internet, I get in touch with other silk painters. I discovered the Guild of Silk Painters and SPIN. All together, each on our side, we are following the same aim. It is really a great honour, after all those years, to be accepted by your association. Be sure of one thing: I will be a proud representative of the Guild of Silk Painters in Canada. I will continue to promote silk painting as a noble form of visual art.
Twenty years later, I am still teaching and I still painting on silk. In two years from now, I will get retired from teaching mathematic, so I will devote all my time to this marvellous passion, painting on silk and teaching silk painting.
Jean-Louis Mireault.
Vercheres, Quebec, Canada