Irène Legendre

Irène Legendre (born 17 November 1904 – 1992)^[2][3] was a Canadian-American painter.

Irène Legendre
Born	17 November 1904 Fall River, Massachusetts, United States
Died	1992 (aged 87–88) Cap-Rouge, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
Education	École des beaux-arts de Québec (1932)
Known for	Painter
Style	Abstract art Landscape painting
Awards	First Place, Quebec Provincial Competition, 1945[1]

Life and work

Irène Legendre was born in Fall River, Massachusetts in November 1904. Legendre started attending École des Beaux-Arts de Québec in 1929, where she studied under Yvan Neilson and Lucien Martial. Legendre graduated in 1932 with a focus on the Cubism style. From 1939 until 1943, she resided in New York City where she studied painting under Amédée Ozenfant and sculpture with Alexander Archipenko.^[1] After studying with Archipenko and Ozenfant, she shifted away from Cubism and began painting landscapes.^[4] While in New York, she participated in her first group show.^[1]

Legendre had returned to Canada by 1946. That year, she Legendre hosted a five-part series about modern painting on Radio-Canada.^[1] She organized art exhibitions, featuring works by herself and others, including Paul-Émile Borduas, Stanley Cosgrove, and Goodridge Roberts. In the 1960s, Legendre taught at the École des Beaux-Arts de Québec.^[5]

Legendre died in 1992 in Cap-Rouge, Quebec City.^[3]

Notable exhibitions

• "Women Artists: Gaining Space, 1900-1965," 23 May-29 August 2010, Musée d'art de Joliette^[6]

Further reading

• Legendre, Irène. Petite histoire de l'art moderne. Quebec: Ateliers du Soleil, 1947.
• Legendre, Irène. Pompon chéri. Montreal: Éditions Beauchemin, 1959.
• Legendre, Irène. "Letter." Artscanada 2.5 (Summer 1945): 151, 227.
• Legendre, Irène. "Untitled: Pompon et le lapin-fée." [Reproduction] Bulletin (National Gallery of Canada) 3 (1979-1980): 34.