1957

Paris: 1957

January 19 - February 3

Participates in the 35 peintures dans l’actualité exhibition held at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and organized by students from Université de Montréal and Mc Gill University. Borduas shows Jeunesse, 1956, and La Grimpée, 1956 (Gagnon 1978, p. 496).

February - March

Participates in the Contemporary Canadian Painters travelling exhibition organized by the National Gallery of Canada shown at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, in Hobart, Australia. The exhibition circulates until December 1957 to the following cities: Perth, North Terrace, Victoria, Brisbane, Sydney and Canberra (Gagnon, 1978, p. 497; 1988, p. 469). Borduas shows:

Oiseau déchiffrant un hiéroglyphe, 1943
La Femme au bijou, 1945
Parachutes végétaux, 1947
La Prison des crimes joyeux, 1948
3 + 3 + 4, 1956

February 11

Borduas makes note of his receipt of Brochuges, Sur fil métamorphose and the manuscript of Synthèse-dépouillement by Claude Gauvreau (Écrits I, p. 44).

March 18 - April 6

The Paul-Émile Borduas. Paintings, 1953-1956 exhibition is held at the Martha Jackson Gallery in New York, (Écrits I, p. 44). 35 paintings are mentioned in the catalogue; 15 are shown (Gagnon 1978, p. 497):

1. Figures aux oiseaux, 1953
2. Fragments de planète, 1953
3. Cotillon en flamme, 1954
4. Tendresse des gris, 1955
5. Pulsation, 1954
6. Les Voiles rouges, 1955
7. 3+4+1, 1956
8. Figures schématiques, 1956
9. Froufrou aigu, 1955
10. La Bouée, 1956
11. 3+3+2, 1956
12. Vigilance grise, 1956
13. Sous le vent de l'île, 1947
14. Sea Gull, 1956
15. Pavots de la nuit, 1950

March 27 - May 19

Participates in the Guggenheim International Awards exhibition held at the Guggenheim Museum in New York (Écrits I, p. 44); Borduas exhibits Les Signes s'envolent, 1953, (Gagnon, p. 497).

April

Short trip to Belgium (Écrits I, p. 44).

April - May

Participates in the Second Biennial Exhibition of Canadian Painting held at the National Gallery of Canada. The exhibition will circulate through February 1959 to fourteen Canadian cities: Montreal, Que., London, Ont., Regina, Sask., Saskatoon, Sask., Winnipeg, Man., Calgary, Alta, Edmonton, Alta, Vancouver, B.C., Quebec City, Que. Stratford, Ont., Cowansville, Que., Rimouski, Que., et Arvida, Que. Borduas exhibts La Grimpée, 1956. (Écrits I, p. 44; Gagnon, 1978, p. 498; Gagnon, 1988, p. 471).

April 8 - 23

Participates in the Drawings and Paintings by Borduas exhibition held at the Gallery of Contemporary Art in Toronto (Écrits I, p. 44; Gagnon, 1978, p. 497-498; 1988, p. 473). Nine oil paintings from different periods in the artists’ career and fifteen watercolours from 1954 are shown.

Oil paintings:

1. Ramage, 1956
2. Vent d'hiver, 1956
3. Réunion des trophées, 1948
4. Composition, 1954
5. État d'âme, 1945
6. Figure au crépuscule, 1944
7. Treillis blancs, 1955
8. Martèlement, 1955
9. L'Île fortifiée, 1941

Watercolours:

1. Menus gibiers, 1954
2. Fanfaronnade, (1950)
3. Baraka, 1954
4. Coupe renversée, (195?)
5. Skieurs en suspens, 1954
6. La Ronde heureuse, (1954?)
7. Groupement d'aiguilles, 1954
8. Massifs déchiquetés, 1954
9. Buisson, 1954
10. Incognito, (195?)
11. Tendre élan, (195?)
12 - 15. Composition (195?)

May

Borduas falls ill (Écrits I, p. 44).

May - June

The Second Biennial Exhibition of Canadian Painting is presented at the École des Beaux-Arts de Montréal (the exhibition was first held at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa in April and May 1957 and will circulate until February 1959 to fourteen Canadian cities). Borduas shows La Grimpée, 1956. (Écrits I, p. 44; Gagnon, 1978, p. 498; Gagnon, 1988, p. 471).

May - June

The Contemporary Canadian Painters travelling exhibition, organized by the National Gallery of Canada, is presented in Perth Australia at the Art Gallery of West Australia. The exhibition will circulate in Australia until December 1957 (Gagnon, 1978, p. 497; 1988, p. 469). Borduas shows:

Oiseau déchiffrant un hiéroglyphe, 1943
La Femme au bijou, 1945
Parachutes végétaux, 1947
La Prison des crimes joyeux, 1948
3 + 3 + 4, 1956

June - July

The Contemporary Canadian Painters travelling exhibition, organized by the National Gallery of Canada, is presented in North Terrace, Australia at the Art Gallery of South Australia. The exhibition will circulate in Australia until December 1957 (Gagnon, 1978, p. 497; 1988, p. 469). Borduas exhibits:

Oiseau déchiffrant un hiéroglyphe, 1943
La Femme au bijou, 1945
Parachutes végétaux, 1947
La Prison des crimes joyeux, 1948
3 + 3+ 4, 1956

July - September

The Second Biennial Exhibition of Canadian Painting is presented at the London Public Library and Art Museum, London, Ontario (the exhibition was first held at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa in April and May 1957 and will circulate until February 1959 to fourteen Canadian cities). Borduas shows La Grimpée, 1956. (Écrits I, p. 44; Gagnon, 1978, p. 498; Gagnon, 1988, p. 471).

July 27

Borduas returns to Paris after a short stay in Brittany; he will visit Mont-Saint-Michel, Saint-Malo and Carnac (Écrits I, p. 44).

August

The Contemporary Canadian Painters exhibition, organized by the National Gallery of Canada, is presented at The National Gallery of Victoria. The exhibition will circulate in Australia until December 1957 (Gagnon, 1978, p. 497; 1988, p. 469). Borduas shows:

Oiseau déchiffrant un hiéroglyphe, 1943
La Femme au bijou, 1945
Parachutes végétaux, 1947
La Prison des crimes joyeux, 1948
3 + 3 + 4, 1956

August - October

Travels to Spain and Portugal. In Spain: Madrid (August 13-17). In Portugal (August 21-24), returns to Spain: Espace (August 28-31), Malaga (August 31), Grenada (September 2-5), Sierra Nevada (September 5-6), Castell de Ferro (September 7-25), Alicante (September 26-28), Perpignan (October 4). He returns to Paris around October 15 (Écrits I, p. 44).

September - October

The Contemporary Canadian Painters traveling exhibition, organized by the National Gallery of Canada, is presented at The Queensland National Art Gallery in Brisbane, Australia. The exhibition will circulate in Australia until December 1957 (Gagnon, 1978, p. 497; 1988, p. 469). Borduas shows:

Oiseau déchiffrant un hiéroglyphe, 1943
La Femme au bijou, 1945
Parachutes végétaux, 1947
La Prison des crimes joyeux, 1948
3 + 3 + 4, 1956

September 18 - October 5

Participates in the inaugural group exhibition at the Galerie Denyse Delrue, in Montreal (Gagnon, 1978, p. 498).

September 20 - 22

Shows 20 paintings at the exhibition held at the Foyer d'art d'Arvida, under the auspices of the Comité des Arts et Métiers. The list of the art works exhibited is unknown, but it is quite probable that they are the same paintings shown in the Drawings and Paintings by Borduas exhibition held at the Gallery of Contemporary Art in Toronto, presented in April (Gagnon, 1978, p. 498).

September 25 - October 16

The Quatre peintres Canadiens à Paris exhibition held at the Dominion Gallery of Montreal (Écrits I, p. 44; Gagnon, 1978, p. 498) brings together twenty paintings by Borduas including the following titles:

Ardente, (1955 ou 1957?)
Survivance d'août, 1956
Rouge de mai, 1956
Les Gouttes bleues,(1956?)
Les Oiseaux de paradis, (1954)
Expansion rayonnante, 1956
Pétales et pieux, 1957

October

The Second Biennial Exhibition of Canadian Painting (first held at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa in April and May 1957 and will circulate until February 1959 to fourteen Canadian cities), is presented in Regina. Borduas shows La Grimpée, 1956. (Écrits I, p. 44; Gagnon, 1978, p. 498; Gagnon, 1988, p. 471).

October

The Second Biennial Exhibition of Canadian Painting (first held at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa in April and May 1957 and will circulate until February 1959 to fourteen Canadian cities), is presented at the Saskatoon Art Centre. Borduas shows La Grimpée, 1956. (Écrits I, p. 44; Gagnon, 1978, p. 498; Gagnon, 1988, p. 471).

October - November

The Contemporary Canadian Painters traveling exhibition, organized by the National Gallery of Canada, is presented at The National Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia. The exhibition will circulate in Australia until December 1957 (Gagnon, 1978, p. 497; 1988, p. 469). Borduas shows:

Oiseau déchiffrant un hiéroglyphe, 1943
La Femme au bijou, 1945
Parachutes végétaux, 1947
La Prison des crimes joyeux, 1948
3 + 3 + 4, 1956

October 8 - November 2

Participates in Recent Developments in Painting exhibition held at Arthur Tooth and Sons in London, England (Écrits I, p. 44; Gagnon, 1978, p. 499; 1988, p. 470). The catalogue published for the occasion mentions:

No 2. La Bouée, 1956
No 3. Silence magnétique, 1957
No 4. Radiante (1957?)
No 5. Fragments d'armure, 1957

October 24 - November 11

Participates in the 11th Annual Sale of Canadian Art, at the Art Gallery of Toronto (Écrits I, p. 45; Gagnon, 1978, p. 499); the list of the works exhibited mentions:

No 17. Massifs déchiquetés, 1954
No 18. La Ronde heureuse, (195?)
No 19. Skieurs en suspens , 1954

November

The Second Biennial Exhibition of Canadian Painting is presented at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg (first held at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa in April and May 1957 and will circulate until February 1959 in fourteen Canadian cities). Borduas shows La Grimpée, 1956. (Écrits I, p. 44; Gagnon, 1978, p. 498; Gagnon, 1988, p. 471).

November - December

The Contemporary Canadian Painters travelling exhibition, organized by the National Gallery of Canada, is presented at the Canberra Art Gallery, Canberra, Australia. The exhibition will circulate in Australia until December 1957 (Gagnon, 1978, p. 497; 1988, p. 469). Borduas shows:

Oiseau déchiffrant un hiéroglyphe, 1943
La Femme au bijou, 1945
Parachutes végétaux, 1947
La Prison des crimes joyeux, 1948
3 + 3 + 4, 1956

December

The Second Biennial Exhibition of Canadian Painting (first held at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa in April and May 1957 and will circulate until February 1959 to fourteen Canadian cities)is presented at the Calgary Allied Arts Centre. Borduas shows La Grimpée, 1956. (Écrits I, p. 44; Gagnon, 1978, p. 498; Gagnon, 1988, p. 471).

???

Borduas shows Tendresse des gris, 1955, at Mount Holyoke (Gagnon, 1978, p. 499).