ÉRIC LAMONTAGNE | SOUS LE VERNIS

From May 14 to June 25, 2022.

“Sous le vernis” is an exhibition installation that could almost be described as an exhibition event, because Éric Lamontagne’s immersive work is so singular in the current art scene.

The result of an important project spread out over many years, the work benefits from the painter’s technical mastery and a well-assumed playfulness to create a particular setting. The viewers are encouraged to enter a sort of grand-scale trompe-l’oeil, and follow the thread of a narrative that extends even beyond the exhibition space.

In an atypical position that almost refers more to literature than to visual art and in which the narration occupies a dominating place, the artist conceives of a whole world before he places the various elements in “Sous le vernis.” From the start, the artist’s design for the invitation, to promote the exhibition, reveals some clues, resembling a “confidential” file that has an aura of espionage or police investigation. Here we discover important parameters: first, the protagonist, Réal Lessart, is a character inspired by the famous Quebec forger. Then, the setting: an office, a library or a study, is inspired by the 19th century, if not the early 20th century. Finally, the quest: for Lessart, is to produce his masterpiece, and for the public, is to follow him in his adventure that will unfold throughout the exhibition, and perhaps unmask him…