The worlds that France Jodoin brings to life in her paintings capture the fleeting spaces between what we know and what we imagine. We recognize the worlds she creates, and yet unlike our world time and borders between land, sea and sky gently but powerfully dissolve away like half-heard whispers in the wind. In her work, reveals and guards secrets, and people move gracefully, knowingly — without fear or threat. Each painting holds a subtle but powerful spark of magic, igniting in the beholder a desire to ask what is happening and why, what came before and what comes next.
“My paintings are a collage of many pieces of information. They are never specific to a place, person or object. I am inspired by a multitude of sensory experiences: a trip I may have taken years ago, a clip from a film, or abstract thoughts that I am compelled to express on canvas.
What inspires me is not necessarily what I have seen, but what I have felt. It can rest in my mind for years. Ideas come to the surface, not unlike waves that come and go – waves whose ebb and flow I do not control. I try to create places where people can rest, like landscapes do. For me, a landscape is never aggressive. It is restful, meditative and contemplative. I want people who view my paintings to take the time to take the time. Each piece shares in common an invitation to the viewer to become part of the narrative.”
France Jodoin lives and works in Cowansville in the Eastern Townships, in the province of Quebec (Canada). She has been exhibiting her paintings for more than 20 years in museums and galleries in Canada, in the United States and in Europe.