Andre Desjardins
The essence of life emerges with every stroke of Desjardins’ brush, every texture and nuance, transforming the empty canvas into a statement about the mysteries of life, love and our universe itself. His thoughts are made real and hidden faces break free from the chaos of life, giving an almost serene and tranquil feeling, while muted and subtle colors coax one into a dreamlike state of viewing the mysteries that Desjardins has revealed.
Born in the small Canadian town of Hauterive, Quebec, Canada, on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River on March 2, 1964, Desjardins earned his bachelor’s degree in Art from the University of Quebec in Montreal and owned a successful marketing firm before making the decision to pursue the freedom of painting full-time.
André’s passion for life and the stories told in the faces of humanity developed early and have continued to evolve. Today he devotes his time, energy, and passion to translating emotions into images of timeless beauty and humanity as the founder of “Visual Emotionism.”
André’s passion turned to painting early this century with the encouragement of friends like Pierre Bernard who urged him “to get out of the frame.” Such advice was just the right thing to say to a man who freely admits that “I love to be challenged.” Desjardins has embraced the freedom that pigment and canvas provide, to develop his “Visual Emotionism” style (simultaneously expressionist and humanist) that fuses the figurative with the abstract and tells the stories of those he has encountered.
Although Desjardins credits the Spanish painter Antoni Tàpies with having the greatest influence on his artistic style (primarily because of Tàpies devotion to making the insignificant significant and his evolution from surrealist to abstract impressionist), it was the death of his father when he was only twelve years old that was the most profound influence on his life and his art, for it has motivated André “to make him live again in my own accomplishments.”