The artist

For almost ten years, Raphaëlle de Groot has engaged herself in a polymorphous work that cannot be described through the artistic mediums she employs – drawing, performance, video, installation, edition or curatorial undertakings.

In fact, her work develops through projects or strategies involving the artist alone or with others – as some projects are conceived for groups of persons with a shared experience. She voluntarily refrains from assigning goals to these strategies (drawing blindfolded, painting while constraints severely restrict her movements or obeying someone else’s instructions), which she uses to experiment with a situation. Whether acting alone or with others (workers, visually impaired persons, nuns, domestique help), she remains decidedly committed to the process at work and constantly strives to safeguard the utmost sensitivity to what her devices bring about and, above all, to what she does not expect. Attention to details, to what seems unimportant, unsubstantial or uninteresting is one of the main keys to understanding her approach. Her practice is akin to investigative procedures and to research and experimentation methods.

If there is one ambition pervading her choices and strategies, it is that of ever calling into question and bringing into play all the factors that form the basis of an artistic gesture, starting with the standpoint of the artist, author, actor, mentor … right down to the very limits of his field of action and the conditions in which the work emerges.

Text: Dominique Abensour, April 2008
Translation: Marie-José Daoust

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Biographical note

Raphaëlle de Groot was born in 1974 in Montreal (Canada) where she lives and works.

She presents her work actively in Canada and Europe since 1997. Over the years she has acquired valuable collaboration experiences with, among others, Dare-dare (an artist-run center, Montreal), the Centre d’histoire de Montréal, the Cittadellarte-Fondazione Pistoletto (Biella, Italy), the Leeds City Art Gallery (UK), the Galerie de l’UQAM (Montreal), the Quartier, Centre d’art contemporain de Quimper (France) and the Southern Alberta Art Gallery (Lethbridge). Her most recent solo exhibition, Le poids des objets – Recommencer, was presented at La Chambre Blanche in Quebec city in 2011. Raphaëlle de Groot took part in the first edition of the Québec Triennial unveiled at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal in 2008. In collaboration with Robert Desjardins, landscape architect, and Gavin Affleck, architect, she worked out a concept for the development of the square des Frères-Charon (Montreal), which was completed in the fall of 2008.

Raphaëlle de Groot holds an MFA from the Université du Québec à Montréal (2006). Winner of the Pierre-Ayot prize 2006, and a 2008 Sobey Award finalist, Raphaëlle de Groot was awarded the Prix Graff (14th edition) in 2011.

Raphaëlle de Groot is represented by the Galerie Graff in Montréal and the Z2O Galleria – Sara Zanin in Rome.

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SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2011

• Le poids des objets – Recommencer, La Chambre Blanche, Quebec

2009

• Le poids des objets, Le lieu, Quebec
• The Burden of Objects, Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge; curator / Ryan

2008

• Le moment de la déprise, Galerie B-312, Montreal
• Chantiers, Le Quartier, centre d’art contemporain de Quimper, Quimper (France), curator / Dominique Abensour

2007

• Il volto interiore, Sara Zanin Z2O Galleria, Rome (Italy); curator / Cecilia Casorati

2006

• Raphaëlle de Groot. En exercice, Galerie de l’UQAM, Montreal (Quebec, Canada); curator / Louise Déry

2004

• Raphaëlle de Groot, Le Quartier, Quimper; curator / Dominique Abensour

2002

• Colin-maillard, Centre Marguerite-d’Youville, Montreal

2001

• Dévoilements, Occurrence, espace d’art et d’essai contemporain, Montreal

2000

• Microcosme, Le Lobe, Chicoutimi (Quebec)

1999

• Lectures, Centre des arts actuels Skol, Montreal

1997

• Reconnaissance, Dare-Dare, Centre de diffusion d’art multidisciplinaire de Montréal, Montreal

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GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2011

• Papier 11, Contemporary Art Fair of Works on Paper, Galerie Graff - espace 100, Montreal

2010

• Femmes artistes. L’éclatement des frontières 1965-2000, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, Quebec; curator / Pierre Landry
• L’unico/The Only One, Trieste Contemporanea, Studio Tommaseo, Trieste, Italy; curator / Julia Trolp
• Artiste-modèle, Galerie Graff, Montreal
• Toronto Art Fair, Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Galerie Graff booth, Toronto

2009

• Vendu / Sold, Esse Benefit Auction, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal, Montreal

2008

• Metamorphosis, AK Bank Sanat, Istanbul, Turkey; curator / Louise Déry
• Se revoir, Le Lobe, Chicoutimi; curator / Carl Bouchard
• Sobey Art Award Exhibition, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto
• Nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed, The Québec Triennial 2008, Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, Montreal; curators / Josée Bélisle, Paulette Gagnon, Marc Lanctôt, Pierre Landry

2007

• Rendre réel / Making Real, 106 Sparks Street, Quebec Scene Gallery, National Arts Centre, Ottawa (Ontario); curator / Marie Fraser

2006

• Arte al Centro – Il Gioco, Cittadellarte-Fondazione Pistoletto, Biella (Italy); artistic direction / Michelangelo Pistoletto

2005

• Negotiating Us, Here and Now, Leeds City Art Gallery and Artist House, Leeds (United Kingdom); curators / Bryan Davies and Nigel Walsh

2004

• Just my Imagination, Art Lab, John Labatt Visual Arts Centre, University of Western Ontario, and Museum London, London (Ontario, Canada); curators / MMB collective. 2005-2007: Art Gallery of Windsor, Windsor (Ontario); Museum of Canadian Contemporary Art, Toronto (Ontario); Dalhousie Art Gallery, Halifax (Nova Scotia); Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatoon (Saskatchewan); Art Gallery of Algoma, Sault Ste-Marie (Ontario); Illingworth Kerr Gallery, Calgary (Alberta); Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge (Alberta)
• Ils causent des systèmes, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec (Quebec); curator / Anne-Marie Ninacs
• Regarder, observer, surveiller, Galerie Séquence, Chicoutimi; curator / Nicole Gingras
• « We Come in Peace... » Histories of the Americas, Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, Montreal; curator / Pierre Landry
• Opening Show, Artist House, Leeds; curator / Bryan Davies

2003

• GRAFF/Graff, Galerie Graff, Montreal; coordination / Christiane Desjardins
• Michelangelo Pistoletto & Cittadellarte &, MuHKA, Antwerpen (Belgium); artistic direction / Michelangelo Pistoletto and Bart De Baere
• Espacios Mestizos, 2nd International Meeting of Contemporary Art, Osorio, Canary Islands (Spain); curator / Orlando Britto Jinorio

2001

• Point de chute, Galerie de l’UQAM, Montreal. Circulation 2001: Centre d’art contemporain de Bruxelles, Bruxelles (Belgium); curator / Louise Déry

2000

• L’algèbre d’Ariane, exchange project organized by the artist run centre Dare-Dare; part 1: contemporary art centre Les Brasseurs, Liège (Belgium); part 2: vacant commercial space in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Montreal; curators / Stéphane Gilot and Caroline Boileau
• L’arène des livres, Centre d’exposition de l’Université de Montréal, Montreal; curator / Florence Chantoury

1998

• Questions d’identités, Galerie Verticale, Laval (Quebec); curator / Marie-Claude Guay

1996

• Valérie Blass, Hugo Brodeur, Raphaëlle de Groot, Ani Deschênes, Martin Valiquette, Galerie Clark, Montreal

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PERFORMANCES AND INTERVENTIONS

2010

• Pêche au lancer, performance presented as part of the exhibition Expansion, Galerie de l’UQAM, Montreal; curator / Louise Déry et Audrey Genois
• Recettes de performance, Web project organized by Avatar, launched February 12 as part of the Mois Multi 10; curator / Jocelyn Robert. - http://avatarquebec.org/recettes/

2009

• Performance presented as part of the OFF BNL MTL organized by Pavilion Projects, La centrale Galerie Powerhouse, Montreal - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJHPe-I0Ses
• Recettes de performance, Web project organized by Avatar, launched February 12 as part of the Mois Multi 10; curator / Jocelyn Robert. - http://avatarquebec.org/recettes/

2007

• Materia viva, series of performances with Mirko Sabatini (musician), July 28-29, as part of Il volo nella rocca di Carmignano organized by Théâtre en vol, Carmignano (Florence) and December 20, Il cantiere, Rome

2006-07

• Projection of the video Drawing Session in the programming Videoism #1, Casual destruction and other forms of violence showed at Mains d'œuvres (St-Ouen, France), October 2006, RLBQ Gallery (Marseille, France), November 2006, Galería 10+36 (Medellin, Colombia), November 2006, Lago Film Festival (Lago, Italy), July 2007, Sjoredsfestivalen (Gothemberg, Sweden), August 2007; curator/Charlie Jeffrey

2005

• Series of performances presented as part of Negotiating Us, Here and Now, Leeds City Art Gallery and Leeds University, Leeds

2003

• One person, two sheets of paper, a stapler, paint and brush, performance presented during a book launch for Gestes d’artistes / Artists’ Gestures, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, New York (United States)

2002

• One person, two sheets of paper, a stapler, paint and brush, performance presented as part of Circo Fragile, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci, Pavia (Italy); curator / Filippo Fabrica

2001

• Collecte de poussière, urban intervention carried out as part of Gestes d’artistes / Artists’ Gestures organized by Optica, Square Cabot, Montreal; curator / Marie Fraser and Marie-Josée Lafortune 2000

2000

• Placement of bookplates in 160 books in the Bibliothèque centrale de la Ville de Montréal, as part of the intervention Lectures, Montreal
• Bibliothèque parallèle, placement of doctored books at the Bibliothèque Les Chiroux, Liège, Belgium, as part of the intervention L’algèbre d’Ariane

1999

• Mémoire X99-Y04.25, urban intervention carried out as part of the event “25 avril 1849, le Parlement brûle!” organized by the Centre d’histoire de Montréal, Place d’Youville parking lot, Montreal
• Collecte d’empreintes, intervention carried out at the Bibliothèque Les Chiroux in association with the contemporary art centre Les brasseurs, Liège

1998

• Collecte d’empreintes, intervention carried out at the Bibliothèque centrale de la Ville de Montréal, in association with the Centre des arts actuels Skol

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ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

2011

• Le poids des objets – Recommencer, La Chambre Blanche, QuEbec

2009

• The Burden of Objects, Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge

2008

• Chantiers, Le Quartier, Quimper

2005

• Negotiating Us, Here and Now, Artist House, Leeds

2004

• Just my Imagination, University of Western Ontario, London

2003/2004

• 8x5x363+1, Cittadellarte-Fondazione Pistoletto, Biella

2003

• Espacios Mestizos, 2nd International Meeting of Contemporary Art, Osorio, Canary

2002

• UNIDEE in Residence, International Program, Cittadellarte-Fondazione Pistoletto, Biella
• Ateliers Graff, Montreal

2000

• L’algèbre d’Ariane, Les Brasseurs, Liège

1999

• Microcosme, Le Lobe, Chicoutimi

1998/1999

• Dévoilements, Religieuses hospitalières de Saint-Joseph (congregation of nuns), Musée des Hospitalières, Montreal
• Centre Canadien d’Architecture, Montreal

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GRANTS AND AWARDS

• Prix Graff, Atelier Graff, Montreal, 2011
• Research and creation grant, Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2007, 2009, 2011
• Research/creation grant, Canada Council for the Arts, 2010
• Design Exchange Award for the Square des Frères-Charon, Toronto, 2009
• Prix Les arts et la ville for the square des Frères-Charon, 2009
• Citation nationale, Association des architectes paysagistes du Canada, for the square des Frères-Charon, 2009
• Finalist for the Sobey Art Award 2008; nominations in 2002, 2007 and 2009
• Prix d’excellence Pierre Ayot, City of Montreal, 2006
• A2 grant for graduate studies, FQRSC, 2004-06
• Creation/production grant, Canada Council for the Arts, 2001 and 2004
• Travel grant, Canada Council for the Arts, 2002
• Travel grant, Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, 1999 and 2002
• Travel grant, Agence Québec/Wallonie-Bruxelles pour la jeunesse, 2000
• B4 grant, stage de perfectionnement dans les arts, FCAR, 1998-99

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COLLECTIONS

• Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, Quebec
• Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, Montreal.
• Collection Prêt d’œuvres d’art, Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, Quebec.
• City of Montreal.
• Private collections.

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CURATORIAL WORK AND COLLABORATIONS

2007

• Participation in the UNESCO urban design workshop « Imaginer la place d’Armes », set up by Design Montréal together with the City of Montreal, October 20 to 27 2007 at the Fabrique of Notre-Dame Basilica and the Galerie d’architecture Monopoli
  http://vieux.montreal.qc.ca/placedarmes/

2005/2007

• Part of the multidisciplinary team set up by the City of Montreal for the development of the Square des Frères- Charon, Montreal

2003/2004

• Guest artist for architectural firm Atlante architecture + design, for the development of interventions to highlight the permanent exhibition at the Jardins de Métis’ Villa Estevan, Grand-Métis (Québec) 2002-04

2002/2004

• 8x5x363+1, multi-part project (artist in residence, intervention, exhibition, publication, symposium) organized in association with Cittadellarte-Fondazione Pistoletto and the Lanificio F.lli Cerruti, a textile factory in Biella

2000/2002

• Mémoire vive, curatorial work, a project organized in association with Dare-Dare, Centre de diffusion d’art multidisciplinaire de Montréal, and the Centre d’histoire de Montréal

2001

• Toujours serviables, jamais servantes, intervention organized in the streets of Montreal with a group of domestic workers and the Association des aides familiales du Québec (AAFQ)

1999/2001

• Beyond the Call of Duty. Chronicles of Domestic Work in Private Homes 1920-2000, exhibition commissioned by the Centre d’histoire de Montréal in association with the AAFQ

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ARTIST’S BOOK

• De Groot, Raphaëlle and Johanne Jarry. L’espace commun. Montreal : Galerie B-312. 2008. 200 numbered copies.
• De Groot, Raphaëlle.- Dévoilements.- With the participation of the Congregation of the Religieuses hospitalières de Saint-Joseph, Montreal.- 2001.- 98 p.- Limited edition (20 copies).
• De Groot, Raphaëlle.- Lectures.- Montreal.- 1999.- 4 volumes.

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STUDIES

2004/2006

• Master’s degree, Écoles des arts visuels et médiatiques, Université du Québec à Montréal

1996/1997

• State University of New York, Purchase College (United States), CRÉPUQ exchange programs

1993/1997

• Bachelor’s degree in visual art, Université du Québec à Montréal