This biography from the Archives of AskART:
|  Andre Charles Bieler CM, BA, LL.D, RCA, OSA, CGP, CSGA, CSPWC, FCA, PDCC (1896 – 1989)
Andre Charles Bieler was a very important Canadian painter, draftsman,
sculptor, printmaker, muralist, educator and national leader in the
artist community. His legacy includes the Kingston Conference*,
the Federation of Canadian Artists*, the Canada Council for the Arts*,
the Agnes Etherington Art Centre and hundreds of works in Canadian
museums.
He was born in Lausanne, Switzerland; lived most of the first twelve
years of his life in Paris, France (1898 – 1908); and he died in
Kingston, Ontario his home since 1936. His family emigrated to
Montreal, Quebec in 1908, which was Bieler’s primary residence until
moving to Kingston. He also had a home in Sainte-Famille, Quebec
on the Ile d’Orleans (in the St. Lawrence River east of Quebec City)
from 1927 to 1930 and in St. Adele, Quebec (the Laurentian Mountains)
in 1935. Both were very important sources of subject matter for his
art. (1)
His painting and graphic mediums included oil, watercolor, gouache*,
tempera*, charcoal, pastel, graphite, serigraph*, ink wash, pen and
ink, casein*, collage*, acrylics, colored pencil, woodcut*, pochoir*,
fresco*, mosaic* tiles, posters, textiles, and mixed mediums. He
sculpted in papier mache*, wax, cement, and bronze. His subjects
included landscape, rural life, portraits, nudes, interiors, genre*,
figures, harbors, mountains, lakes, street scenes, social commentary,
industry and as an abstractionist – shape, color and texture. The
painting locations include scenes from across Canada (Gaspe, Quebec to
the Indian villages on Skeena River at Prince Rupert B.C.), as well as
from his travels in Europe and Mexico. His styles included
Regionalism*, Fauvism*, Realism*, Expressionism*, and Abstract
Expressionism*. AskART have many excellent examples of his work. (2)
Bieler decided to become an artist after he was wounded in a gas
attack, at Passchendaele (1917) in World War I, while serving in the
Canadian Army (1915 – 1919); though his art education began over a
decade before that. On the information forms deposited by him with the
National Gallery of Canada, Biéler includes Lycée Carnot, his
elementary school in Paris (c.1905 – 1908), at the top of his formal
art education resume. Later, he attended the Montreal Technical
Institute [architecture] (1913 – 1915); Stetson University, Deland,
Florida (1920) under Harry D. Fluhart-Williams (3); the Art Students'
League at Woodstock, New York (summers 1920 – 1921) under George
Bellows, Eugene Edward Speicher and Charles Rosen; the Ecole du Louvre,
Paris (1923); and the Atelier Ranson, Paris (1923) under Paul Sérusier
and Maurice Denis. He also studied [fresco] in Switzerland (1922 –
1926) under his uncle Ernest Biéler; and when Andre began sculpting in
1963, his teacher was his son Ted Biéler (see AskART). (4)
In addition to his previously noted travels, Biéler also took a year's
sabbatical leave studying and painting in Europe (Switzerland, Italy,
Spain, Holland, Belgium, France, England) in 1953 and 1954; he visited
Europe again in 1959 (France, Italy) and in 1974 (Greece). He also
visited Bermuda in 1921; Prince Rupert and the Indian villages on the
Skeena River in British Columbia in 1956; and Mexico three times –
1964, 1966 and 1972. (5)
His distinguished career as an educator began after returning to
Montreal in 1930; his first teaching position was at the Atelier*, a
school and art association (1931 – 1933) he founded with John Lyman. (6)
In 1936, he became artist-in-residence at Queen's University, Kingston,
Ontario. He eventually became a professor and taught there until his
retirement in 1963. During his tenure, he founded and headed the
university’s art department, organized and hosted the Kingston
Conference* (1941), founded and directed the Agnes Etherington Art
Centre (1957 – 1963), and was a founding member of the University'a Art
Association of Canada (1957). He remained Professor Emeritus at Queen’s
University and an active artist there until his death.
The Kingston Conference* is perhaps his most famous accomplishment
because it led to the founding of the Federation of Canadian Artists*
and ultimately the creation of the Canada Council for the Arts*.
He also taught at the Banff School of Fine Arts for four summers (1940,
1947, 1949, 1952); a period that, in connection with his name, is
referred in the school’s history, as “the Golden Years”. (7)
Bieler was a member of several artist organizations including the
Canadian Society of Graphic Artists* (c.1931), the Canadian Group of
Painters* (c.1935) [VP 1942], the Ontario Society of Artists* (1937),
the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour* (1939), the Royal
Canadian Academy of Arts* (Associate 1942, Academician 1959), and the
Print and Drawing Council of Canada* (1976). He was also a founder of
the Federation of Canadian Artists* (1941) and its president from 1942
to 1943. (8)
In addition to exhibiting with the above organizations he exhibited
with the Art Association of Montreal (now the Montreal Museum of Fine
Arts) in 1924, 1928, 1929, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1937, 1939, 1944,
1948, 1953, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1959 and 1968; the National Gallery of
Canada (Ottawa) Annual Exhibitions from 1928 to 1933; the Canadian
National Exhibition (Toronto) in 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934,
1936, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1955 and 1956;
the Group of Seven* in 1931; and the Art Institute of Chicago in 1939.
(9)
His works have been in numerous important themed Canadian exhibitions
like the “All Canadian Show”, Vancouver Exhibition, Vancouver, B.C.
(1928); “A Century of Canadian Art”, Tate Gallery, London, England
(1938); “Contemporary Painting in Canada”, Addison Gallery of American
Art, Andover, Massachusetts (1942); “Canadian Art”, National Museum,
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (1944, 1950); “Canadian Art 1760 – 1943”, Yale
University Art Gallery (1944); “Forty years of Canadian Painting”,
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (1949); “50 Years of Painting in Canada”,
Art Gallery of Toronto (1949); “Canadian Painting”, National Gallery,
Washington, D.C. (1950); “Painters of Canada”, Virginia Museum of Fine
Arts, Richmond (1950); "Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour,
Retrospective Exhibition", National Gallery of Canada (1951); “Canadian
Artists Abroad”, Museum London, Ontario (1956); “Canadian Painting of
the Thirties”, Art Gallery of Ontario (1967); “Canadian Painting in the
Thirties”, National Gallery of Canada (1975); "Three Generations of
Quebec Painting", Montreal Museum of Contemporary Art (1976); “The
Laurentians: Painters in a Landscape”, Art Gallery of Ontario (1977);
“Modern Art in Quebec 1916 – 1946”, National Gallery of Canada (1982);
“The Language of Landscape”, Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax
(1989); “Pilgrims in the Wilderness: The Struggle of the Canadian Group
of Painters”, Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa, Ontario (1993); and
“The Group of Seven – Art For A Nation”, National Gallery of Canada
(1995). (10)
His works have also been included in several international exhibitions
such as the New York World’s Fair (1939); International Water Color
Exhibition, Chicago (1939); Golden Gate International Exposition*, San
Francisco (1939); "11th Biennial Water Color Exhibition", Brooklyn
Museum, New York (1941); and the Inaugural Exhibition of the National
Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (1941).
Bieler has been the subject of over 30 retrospective and solo
exhibitions at various public and commercial galleries. The first major
public venue solo was at the Art Association of Montreal in 1924. The
first retrospective was at the Agnes Etherington Art Centre in 1963.
Subsequently, there has been “André Biéler, 50 years: a retrospective
exhibition 1920 – 1970”, Agnes Etherington Art Centre [touring] (1970);
“André Biéler in Rural Quebec”, Agnes Etherington Art Centre [touring]
(1988); “André Biéler: Draftsman and Printmaker”, Quebec Museum of Fine
Arts, Quebec City [touring] (2003); and "André Biéler", McCord Museum,
Montreal (2006).
Bieler’s works are very actively traded on the Canadian auction market,
they are in numerous private and corporate collections, and they are in
many important public collections.
According to the Canadian Heritage Information Network* and the Quebec
Museum Society there are a total of 305 Biéler works in the permanent
collections of Canadian museums. They include: the Winnipeg Art Gallery
(Manitoba), Quebec Museum of Fine Arts (Quebec City), Montreal Museum
of Fine Arts, Art Gallery of Hamilton (Ontario), Robert McLaughlin
Gallery (Oshawa, Ontario), Art Gallery of Greater Victoria (B.C.),
Joliette Art Museum (Quebec), Ottawa Art Gallery [Firestone Art
Collection*] (Ontario), Sherbrooke Museum of Fine Arts (Quebec), Art
Gallery of Nova Scotia (Halifax), Glenbow Museum (Calgary, Alberta),
Vancouver Art Gallery (B.C.), Art Gallery of Alberta (Edmonton),
McMichael Canadian Art Collection (Kleinburg, Ontario), Agnes
Etherington Art Centre (Kingston, Ontario), Art Gallery of Ontario
(Toronto), Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery (Concordia University,
Montreal), Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies (Banff, Alberta),
Canadian War Museum (Ottawa), and the National Gallery of Canada, which
has 30 of his works. (11)
The locations of his most well known murals include the Aluminum
Company of Canada, Saguenay (formerly Arvida), Quebec [often referred
to as the Shipshaw Mural] (1947); the department of Veterans Affairs
Building, Ottawa (1955); Queen Elizabeth Hotel, Montreal (1957);
Chalmers United Church, Kingston, Ontario (1957); Proctor & Gamble,
Dorval, Quebec (1958); and Aluminum Laboratories Ltd., Kingston,
Ontario (1968). (12)
André Bieler’s art and the very influential role he played in the
development of modern art in Canada are discussed in most Canadian art
history books. There are monographs from many of his solo and
retrospective exhibitions and two substantial biographies – André
Biéler: At the Crossroads of Canadian Painting” (2004), by David Karel
and “André Biéler: An Artist's Life and Times” (2006), by Frances K.
Smith.
Five documentary films have discussed his life and work – “7 Painters
of Quebec” (1944), directed by Graham McInnes and Marius Barbeau;
“Bieler” (1973), directed by Peter Harcourt; “Golden Family Album”
(1982), directed by Peter Bieler; “Brothers in Arms” (1989), directed
by Cameron Graham; and “The Art of Time” (2001), directed by Philippe
Baylaucq. (13)
Among his numerous awards and honors are the J.W.L. Forster Award from
the Ontario Society of Artists (1957), Professor Emeritus, Queen's
University (1963), the Canadian Centennial Medal (1967), and an
honorary degree (Doctor of Laws, Honoris Causa) from Queen's University
(1969). (14)
In 1988, André Bieler was awarded one of Canada’s highest honors – the Order of Canada (CM). The citation reads:
“In 1941 he organized the first Conference of Canadian Artists, which
set into motion ideas and actions which eventually led to the
establishment of the Canada Council. Deeply committed to art, he
continues to paint, and despite his advanced age, has had contemporary
pieces represented in current exhibitions in Kingston, where he is
Professor Emeritus of Art at Queen's University.” (15)
Footnotes:
A general note about sources: With thanks to the National Gallery of
Canada and curator Charles C. Hill, we have two very valuable original
sources of data on André Biéler. First, between 1928 and 1965 Biéler
submitted five information forms to the National Gallery detailing his
education, travels, associations, teaching and other activities to the
date submitted. Second, on December 18, 1973, in preparation for the
exhibition “Canadian Painting in the Thirties”, Charles C. Hill sat
down with Biéler and recorded a few hours of conversation with him
about his activities and associations during the 1930s. Both of these
are available online and noted below. They are the primary sources of
names and dates used in this biography. The additional sources used are
cited in the respective paragraph footnotes.
NGC Information Form – Feb. 27, 1928 –
http://cybermuse.gallery.ca/cybermuse/servlet/imageserver?src=DO957&ext=x.pdf.
NGC Information Form – July 13, 1942 –
http://cybermuse.gallery.ca/cybermuse/servlet/imageserver?src=DO958&ext=x.pdf.
NGC Information Form – September 1963 – http://cybermuse.gallery.ca/cybermuse/servlet/imageserver?src=DO961&ext=x.pdf.
NGC Information Form – undated (c. after 1964) –
http://cybermuse.gallery.ca/cybermuse/servlet/imageserver?src=DO960&ext=x.pdf.
NGC Information Form – August 13, 1965 –
http://cybermuse.gallery.ca/cybermuse/servlet/imageserver?src=DO959&ext=x.pdf.
Charles Hill recorded conversations with André Biéler – December 18,
1973 –
http://cybermuse.gallery.ca/cybermuse/search/artist_e.jsp?iartistid=512.
(1) Source: “Andre Bieler: An artist's life and times” (2006), by Frances K. Smith (see AskART book references).
(2) Sources: AskART Images; and museum illustrations and descriptions
of mediums in the Canadian Heritage Information Network* and the Quebec
Museum Society data bases.
(3) All artist teachers, and artist associates mentioned in this biography have their own pages in AskART.
(4) Sources: NGC Information Forms and tapes; and “André Bieler: An
artist's life and times” (2006), by Frances K. Smith (see AskART book
references).
(5) Sources: NGC Information Forms and tapes; "A Dictionary of Canadian
Artists" (1974), by Colin S. MacDonald; and “Andre Bieler: An artist's
life and times” (2006), by Frances K. Smith (see AskART book
references).
(6) Education and teaching sources: NGC Information Forms and tapes;
“André Biéler: An artist's life and times” (2006), by Frances K. Smith;
and NGC Artist’s Page –
http://cybermuse.gallery.ca/cybermuse/enthusiast/thirties/artist_e.jsp?iartistid=512.
(7) Sources: NGC Information Forms and tapes; and “Artists, Builders
and Dreamers” (1982), by David and Peggy Leighton (see AskART book
references).
(8) Sources: NGC Information Forms and tapes; "A Dictionary of Canadian
Artists" (1974), by Colin S. MacDonald; and "Passionate Spirits: A
History of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, 1880 – 1980" (1980) by
Rebecca Sisler (see AskART book references).
(9) Sources: NGC Information Forms and tapes; "The Group of Seven – Art
for a Nation” (1995), by Charles C. Hill; and “André Biéler: An
artist's life and times” (2006), by Frances K. Smith (see AskART book
references).
(10) Exhibition sources: NGC Information Forms and tapes; the Montreal
Museum of Contemporary Art and the Art Gallery of Ontario, both have
extensive archived catalogue summaries online; Barb Duff, Library
Services Coordinator, The Robert McLaughlin Gallery; “Canadian Painting
in the Thirties” (1975), Charles C. Hill; "The Group of Seven –
Art for a Nation” (1995), by Charles C. Hill; Art Gallery of Ontario –
the Canadian Collection" (1970), by Helen Pepall Bradfield; “The
National Gallery of Canada Catalogue of Paintings and Sculpture - Vol
III: Canadian School” (1960), by R.H. Hubbard; "Agnes Etherington Art
Centre: Permanent Collection" (1968), by Frances K. Smith; and “Andre
Bieler: An artist's life and times” (2006), by Frances K. Smith (see
AskART book references).
(11) The Ottawa Art Gallery has 19 Biéler works not listed in the
Canadian Heritage Information Network* or the Quebec Museum Society
data bases, which would make a total of 324 works in the museums listed
above. –
http://www.ottawaartgallery.ca/collections/collections-search-en.php?keyword=bieler&submit-button=Search&searchType=keyword&search=true&ad_collection=0.
(12) Source: "A Dictionary of Canadian Artists" (1974), by Colin S. MacDonald (see AskART book references).
(13) Source: “Andre Bieler: An artist's life and times” (2006), by Frances K. Smith (see AskART book references).
(14) Sources: "A Dictionary of Canadian Artists" (1974), by Colin S.
MacDonald; and "Agnes Etherington Art Centre: Permanent Collection"
(1968), by Frances K. Smith. (see AskART book references).
(15) Source: Governor General of Canada –
http://archive.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=2465.
* For more in-depth information about these terms and others, see
AskART.com Glossary
http://www.askart.com/AskART/lists/Art_Definition.aspx.
Prepared and contributed by M.D. Silverbrooke.
MAGAZINE AND NEWSPAPER REFERENCES
Montreal Standard, Mar. 23, 1940, "Bieler's Studies of Country Life" by Robert Ayre.
Kingston Whig-Standard, Nov. 29, 1947 "Canadian Artist. IX - André Bieler" by Josephine Hambleton.
Montreal Standard, Oct. 9, 1948 "Aluminum Mural: André Bieler paints development of the Saguenay River" by Zoe Biéler.
Kingston Whig-Standard, Oct. 27, 1966 "André Bieler in 'Return' shows Mastery of Form" by Frances K. Smith.
Journal of Canadian Studies Vol. IV, No. 4 Tor., 1969 "Commentary: Andre Bieler's Deep Relief Prints" by W.B. Thorne.
Ottawa Citizen, Oct. 5, 1974 "Bieler at 78 inspired by old sketches" by Kathleen Walker, P.69 (solo at Wallack Galleries, Ott.).
Ottawa Citizen, Oct. 28, 1982 "Entertainment - Bieler puts people in
his scenics" by Nancy Baele (solo at Wallack Galleries, Ott.).
Globe & Mail, Toronto., Aug. 27, 1988 "Years in rural Quebec formative
ones for Bieler" by Kay Kritzwiser (show of 77 works at AEAC).
Kingston Whig-Standard, Oct. 14, 1989 "Artist received Order of Canada in special ceremony at Hotel Dieu" by Carol Toller.
The Gazette, Montreal. (CP) Dec. 3, 1989 "'People's artist' Bieler has died at age 93".
Source: A Dictionary of Canadian Artists (1974), by Colin S. MacDonald (see AskART book references).
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