Low Down Articles
Artist Profiles - Lucie Rossignol
Article 58 of 73
From the book Artists of the Gatineau Hill by Catherine Joyce. This article first appeared in the "Artist Profiles" column in the July 22, 2009 issue of the The Low Down to Hull and Back News.
Reprinted with permission. Search complete list of Low Down Articles.
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Passion for Porcelain
In 1978 at the age of twenty-three Lucie Rossignol opened her first pottery store in an area of old Quebec City being developed into Cartier Petit Champlain, below Château Frontenac. By the time she left in 1983, the area had become an artist mecca, internationally renowned.
From the earliest age Lucie loved to draw and to make things. Her mother inspired her with meticulous knitting and crocher work — between them they always had some artistic project to absorb and challenge their energies.
Born in St. Jerome in 1954 but raised in Ottawa, Lucie attended Rideau Convent, then Canterbury for two years and finally Charlebois where she first experienced working in clay. Larer, studying Fine Arts at the University of Ottawa (BFA 1977), she majored in sculpture with Peter Gnass.
It wasnt until a special workshop and exhibition, "Potierama", in Quebec City with Kynia Ishikawa in 1978 that she fell in love with porcelain. He asked her to be his apprentice. Six months later she set up her Atelier Les Porcelaines Lucie Rossignol in Petit Champlain — the third artist’s studio to open in the development.
And always there was New York City. From 1975 to 1995 Lucie would visit New York for months at a time, roller skating in the parks and hanging out with other artists in the galleries and museums. In 1986 she completed her High School teaching certificate at the University of Ottawa, embarking upon a teaching career in the arts that would allow her to pursue her passion for porcelain without economic pressure.
With her sculptural training Lucie became fascinated by the challenge of porcelain. “You have to be very centred to throw a perfect pot. The material is very tricky and collapses easily. I fall into a meditative rhythm when I work, which over time has allowed me to throw quickly and precisely."
Porcelain also called Lucie back to her love of drawing and painting. She began decorating her smooth white pottery with the delicate irises she has became known for. The intricate detail of these fragile flowers is reminiscent of Japanese art, an influence that has always compelled her.
In 1993 through the Japanese Embassy, Lucie enrolled in the College of Ceramics at Arita in Japan, a town where porcelain has been made for over 400 years. Before leaving she studied Japanese, preparing for an experience that would change her life.
"In Arita people take the time to look at porcelain — every piece of porcelain is alive over there. The master holds your work for at least five minutes, looking at it, feeling it, allowing it to breathe in his hands. Artists paint with free brushstrokes - their bodies know how to create and to decorate. For them porcelain is the purest art."
Having identified with artists like her, Lucie came home dedicated to her own path. She incorporated Arita into her own vision. Pale porcelain with deep cobalt blue calligraphic lines and delicate flowers, her style has become her signature. After years of production and multiple solo and group exhibitions, Lucie is on her first year with the Studio Tour. Opening her Chelsea studio on weekends from June to October, she displays her own line of porcelain - a 'Lucie Rossignol' recognizable everywhere.