Yvan Genest
Profile
Living a life entirely devoted to his art for over 30 years,Yvan Genest spends his time between his Montreal hometown and Puerto Vallarta studios, while remaining very active in the Paris, Los Angeles and Seattle art scenes. His works have attracted an international circle of collectors seduced by the contemporary and timeless strength of his iconography.
The Beginning
Yvan Genest’s career had unconventional beginnings. At first, his artistic temperament drove him to music. As a songwriter, musician and singer, he toured throughout Europe as a performer for many years. Until he discovered painting, where he found an unforeseen ground for his fertile imagination.
From Paris to Mexico
For many years, he worked and had successful exhibitions in Paris, while honing his art with renowned artists. A first trip to Mexico in 1985 led him to discover the profound spirituality of Mexican art. His first exhibition in Puerto Vallarta, in 1998, brought him immediate recognition..
Artistic Process
Yvan Genest’s maverick personality drove him to explore all paths of visual arts and develop his unique, shamanic and timeless imagery. A self-taught artist, he paints as a dancer dances, with both his body and spirit. His influences are diverse, from Mexican popular culture, Expressionism and modern free-form figurative painting, to specific artists such as Joseph Beuys, Rufino Tamayo and Francis Bacon.Yvan Genest has created up to this day more than 7000 works.
Iconography
Yvan’s paintings are journeys into the underworld of the human soul.They represent the human psyche – the collective unconscious – into which the painter dives in order to bring back icons and symbols that are at the threshold of dreams. His art belongs to contemporary mystical expressionism, combining the insights and paradoxes of modernity with echoes of bygone ages of humankind.
Statement
"A painting is a door, a passage I discovered towards the unconscious, above and beyond the world of mere appearances. Beyond this door, the painter acts as a fashion designer for the soul."
The Present
His recent works have been the subject of a museum exhibition in the oldest Town Hall in France at La Réole, near Bordeaux. Several of them are exhibited at the Gallery Dante.
Yvan is currently working in his studio in Puerto Vallarta on large size canvases.The larger the canvas, the larger the door that leads to the universal unconscious.
Mediums
Watercolor, acrylic, pastel, tempera, oil, etching, serigraphy, linocut, woodcut, and digital art.
Expertise
Magic Special Effects Workshops, conceived to help students discover and explore their own imagery; Digital Imagery Workshops; Lectures on Art (and art history); Live Art Performances.
EXHIBITIONS
SOLO SHOWS
2022. "Messages du Nord" Ancien Hôtel de Ville de La Réole France
Œuvres récentes Galerie ART + Ottawa Canada
2020 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2019 « Messages from the North ». Alpha Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
« La hermosa baya ». Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2018 « 30 Years of Paintings ». Rétrospective, Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2017 « Équinoxe ». Alpha Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
Œuvres récentes. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
« La magie des couleurs ». Galerie Cheriff Tabet, Beyrouth, Liban
« Tableaux urbains ». M Galerie, Montréal, Canada
« San Miguel Paintings ». Gallery San Francisco, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
2016 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2015 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2014 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2013 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Recent Watercolours. River Mill Art Space, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
2012 Œuvres récentes. M Galerie, Montréal, Canada
Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2011 « Tableaux urbains ». M Galerie, Montréal, Canada
« La mémoire des villes II ». Galerie Au Coin des Artistes, Montréal, Canada
Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2010 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2018 « Aïda ». Gallery Arte Forte, Seattle WA, USA
Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2007 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2006 « Painting and Ceramics ». J. Moore Gallery Los Angeles, CA, USA
Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2005 Œuvres récentes. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2004 « L'Art de vivre ». Studio Ombre et Lumières, Paris, France
« Painting and Ceramics ». Judith Ewing Morlan Contemporary Art, Puerto Vallarta,
Mexico
« Art of Life » Gallery PV Art, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2003 « Lucky Charms » Judith Ewing Morlan Contemporary Art, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2002 Récent Works. Galeria Rosas Blancas, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2001 « De mémoire d’âme ». Galerie Selmersheim, Paris, France
Récent Works Galeria Rosas Blancas, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
1999 Œuvres récentes. Galerie Mage, Montréal, Canada,
1997 Œuvres récentes. La GALERIE, Montréal, Canada
Œuvres récentes. Galerie Mage, Montréal, Canada
1996 « Spirits & Diablos ». Galerie Joël Garcia, Paris, France
1995 Œuvres récentes. La GALERIE, Montréal, Canada
« La mémoire des villes ». Galerie Au Coin des artistes, Montréal, Canada
Œuvres récentes. Atelier Impasse Crosatier, Paris, France
1994 Rétrospective La GALERIE , Montréal, Canada
1993 Œuvres récentes. La GALERIE, Montréal, Canada
Œuvres récentes. Galerie Au Coin des Artistes, Montréal, Canada
1992 Œuvres récentes. La GALERIE, Montréal, Canada
1991 Œuvres récentes. Galerie Au Coin des Artistes, Montréal, Canada
1989 Œuvres récentes. Galerie Mage, Montréal, Canada
GROUP SHOWS
2021 « Respiro luego existo » Mexico ciudad, Mexico
2020 Alpha Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
2019 Alpha Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
2018 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2017 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2016 Gallery San Francisco, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
2015 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2014 Artspace Oakville Gallery Toronto, Canada
Museo de Arte Peter Gray, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2012 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 2011 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2010 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 2009 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2008 Arteforte Gallery Seattle Wa, USA 2007 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
James Gray Gallery, Los Angeles CA, USA
Galerie Luxart, Montréal, Canada
2006 Gallery 33, Los Angeles CA, USA
Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2005 Galerie Desja, Montreal, Canada
Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2004 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2003 Judith Ewing Morlan Contemporary Art, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2002 Judith Ewing Morlan Contemporary Art, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Galerie Les Modernes, Montréal, Qc. Canada
2001 Galeria Rosas Blancas, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2000 Galeria Rosas Blancas, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
1999 Galeria Rosas Blancas, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
1998 « Painted Objects ». Galeria Pacifico, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
1997 8e Grand marché d'art contemporain, Paris, France
1996 6e Grand marché d'art contemporain, Paris, France
1995 La GALERIE, Montréal, Canada
5e Grand marché d'art contemporain, Paris, France
1986 Festival international de l'aquarelle, Montréal, Canada
1985 Festival international de l'aquarelle, Montréal, Canada
1984 Galerie L'art vivant, Montréal, Canada
PERFORMANCES
2019 « MOSAICO MEX II » Divino Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
« Painting Live » Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
2017 « MOSAICO III » Alpha Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
2015 « MOSAICO MEX » Divino Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2012 « MOSAICO + » M Galerie, Montréal, Canada
2011 « MOSAICO » M Galerie, Montréal, Canada
2010 « Transhumances », Performance with Oscar Solis. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Profile
Living a life entirely devoted to his art for over 30 years,Yvan Genest spends his time between his Montreal hometown and Puerto Vallarta studios, while remaining very active in the Paris, Los Angeles and Seattle art scenes. His works have attracted an international circle of collectors seduced by the contemporary and timeless strength of his iconography.
The Beginning
Yvan Genest’s career had unconventional beginnings. At first, his artistic temperament drove him to music. As a songwriter, musician and singer, he toured throughout Europe as a performer for many years. Until he discovered painting, where he found an unforeseen ground for his fertile imagination.
From Paris to Mexico
For many years, he worked and had successful exhibitions in Paris, while honing his art with renowned artists. A first trip to Mexico in 1985 led him to discover the profound spirituality of Mexican art. His first exhibition in Puerto Vallarta, in 1998, brought him immediate recognition..
Artistic Process
Yvan Genest’s maverick personality drove him to explore all paths of visual arts and develop his unique, shamanic and timeless imagery. A self-taught artist, he paints as a dancer dances, with both his body and spirit. His influences are diverse, from Mexican popular culture, Expressionism and modern free-form figurative painting, to specific artists such as Joseph Beuys, Rufino Tamayo and Francis Bacon.Yvan Genest has created up to this day more than 7000 works.
Iconography
Yvan’s paintings are journeys into the underworld of the human soul.They represent the human psyche – the collective unconscious – into which the painter dives in order to bring back icons and symbols that are at the threshold of dreams. His art belongs to contemporary mystical expressionism, combining the insights and paradoxes of modernity with echoes of bygone ages of humankind.
Statement
"A painting is a door, a passage I discovered towards the unconscious, above and beyond the world of mere appearances. Beyond this door, the painter acts as a fashion designer for the soul."
The Present
His recent works have been the subject of a museum exhibition in the oldest Town Hall in France at La Réole, near Bordeaux. Several of them are exhibited at the Gallery Dante.
Yvan is currently working in his studio in Puerto Vallarta on large size canvases.The larger the canvas, the larger the door that leads to the universal unconscious.
Mediums
Watercolor, acrylic, pastel, tempera, oil, etching, serigraphy, linocut, woodcut, and digital art.
Expertise
Magic Special Effects Workshops, conceived to help students discover and explore their own imagery; Digital Imagery Workshops; Lectures on Art (and art history); Live Art Performances.
EXHIBITIONS
SOLO SHOWS
2022. "Messages du Nord" Ancien Hôtel de Ville de La Réole France
Œuvres récentes Galerie ART + Ottawa Canada
2020 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2019 « Messages from the North ». Alpha Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
« La hermosa baya ». Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2018 « 30 Years of Paintings ». Rétrospective, Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2017 « Équinoxe ». Alpha Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
Œuvres récentes. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
« La magie des couleurs ». Galerie Cheriff Tabet, Beyrouth, Liban
« Tableaux urbains ». M Galerie, Montréal, Canada
« San Miguel Paintings ». Gallery San Francisco, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
2016 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2015 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2014 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2013 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Recent Watercolours. River Mill Art Space, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
2012 Œuvres récentes. M Galerie, Montréal, Canada
Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2011 « Tableaux urbains ». M Galerie, Montréal, Canada
« La mémoire des villes II ». Galerie Au Coin des Artistes, Montréal, Canada
Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2010 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2018 « Aïda ». Gallery Arte Forte, Seattle WA, USA
Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2007 Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2006 « Painting and Ceramics ». J. Moore Gallery Los Angeles, CA, USA
Récent Works. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2005 Œuvres récentes. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2004 « L'Art de vivre ». Studio Ombre et Lumières, Paris, France
« Painting and Ceramics ». Judith Ewing Morlan Contemporary Art, Puerto Vallarta,
Mexico
« Art of Life » Gallery PV Art, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2003 « Lucky Charms » Judith Ewing Morlan Contemporary Art, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2002 Récent Works. Galeria Rosas Blancas, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2001 « De mémoire d’âme ». Galerie Selmersheim, Paris, France
Récent Works Galeria Rosas Blancas, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
1999 Œuvres récentes. Galerie Mage, Montréal, Canada,
1997 Œuvres récentes. La GALERIE, Montréal, Canada
Œuvres récentes. Galerie Mage, Montréal, Canada
1996 « Spirits & Diablos ». Galerie Joël Garcia, Paris, France
1995 Œuvres récentes. La GALERIE, Montréal, Canada
« La mémoire des villes ». Galerie Au Coin des artistes, Montréal, Canada
Œuvres récentes. Atelier Impasse Crosatier, Paris, France
1994 Rétrospective La GALERIE , Montréal, Canada
1993 Œuvres récentes. La GALERIE, Montréal, Canada
Œuvres récentes. Galerie Au Coin des Artistes, Montréal, Canada
1992 Œuvres récentes. La GALERIE, Montréal, Canada
1991 Œuvres récentes. Galerie Au Coin des Artistes, Montréal, Canada
1989 Œuvres récentes. Galerie Mage, Montréal, Canada
GROUP SHOWS
2021 « Respiro luego existo » Mexico ciudad, Mexico
2020 Alpha Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
2019 Alpha Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
2018 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2017 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2016 Gallery San Francisco, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
2015 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2014 Artspace Oakville Gallery Toronto, Canada
Museo de Arte Peter Gray, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2012 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 2011 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2010 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 2009 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2008 Arteforte Gallery Seattle Wa, USA 2007 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
James Gray Gallery, Los Angeles CA, USA
Galerie Luxart, Montréal, Canada
2006 Gallery 33, Los Angeles CA, USA
Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2005 Galerie Desja, Montreal, Canada
Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2004 Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2003 Judith Ewing Morlan Contemporary Art, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2002 Judith Ewing Morlan Contemporary Art, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Galerie Les Modernes, Montréal, Qc. Canada
2001 Galeria Rosas Blancas, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2000 Galeria Rosas Blancas, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
1999 Galeria Rosas Blancas, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
1998 « Painted Objects ». Galeria Pacifico, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
1997 8e Grand marché d'art contemporain, Paris, France
1996 6e Grand marché d'art contemporain, Paris, France
1995 La GALERIE, Montréal, Canada
5e Grand marché d'art contemporain, Paris, France
1986 Festival international de l'aquarelle, Montréal, Canada
1985 Festival international de l'aquarelle, Montréal, Canada
1984 Galerie L'art vivant, Montréal, Canada
PERFORMANCES
2019 « MOSAICO MEX II » Divino Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
« Painting Live » Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
2017 « MOSAICO III » Alpha Art Gallery, Ottawa, Canada
2015 « MOSAICO MEX » Divino Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2012 « MOSAICO + » M Galerie, Montréal, Canada
2011 « MOSAICO » M Galerie, Montréal, Canada
2010 « Transhumances », Performance with Oscar Solis. Galleria Dante, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
