Midnight Haven

About Midnight Haven

This contemporary colorful abstract painting is by Paul Fournier.

Paul Fournier is considered one of Canada’s most significant abstract expressionists, He received early praise from the distinguished NY art critic, Donald Kuspit who described his ‘Fauvist-like’ work as that of an ‘exotic modernist.’ Fauvism was a post-impressionist movement in France (think Matisse) characterized by an imaginative use of color. Fournier’s work is most often inspired by the natural world. In this lush acrylic painting thickly applied brushstrokes in bright yellow, blue, red, purple, green, orange, and turquoise play against a matte black background to create a vivid and dynamic composition. His signature use of extensive mark-making and drips adds both texture and movement to his work.

“As a painter, I’m doing the same thing with colour, shape, and movement that a musician does.” Paul Fournier

“Fournier continues to explore and extend the limits of his own imagery, his own handwriting, his own ability to use colour and paint. His new pictures are personal and expressive: lyrical, generous and decorative in the best, Matissean, sense of the word.” Karen Wilkin, NY Curator, Art Critic

Paul Fournier was born during the Great Depression in Simcoe, Ontario. He first studied at the Ontario College of Art and Design in 1959 and went on to study printmaking at McMaster University in Hamilton in 1967. Fournier also received an Honorary Doctor of Laws from McMaster in 1996 where he’d also been the artist in residence. During a career that spans six decades, Fournier has had solo exhibitions in several Canadian cities and in the U.S. His work is held in private collections in North and South America, and Europe. Public collections include the Art Gallery of Ontario, the National Gallery of Canada, the Sculpture Garden in Washington, and the Tate Museum in London.