Of Myths and Men: Mathieu Laca @ Patrick John Mills
More : Mathieu Laca, New painting, Ottawa Gay Art, Patrick John Mills
Ottawa, Canada’s quiet Capital, is known for its conservatism. Last year, the Pop Life exhibit on pop art at the National Gallery caused a bit of stir because some of its content was sexually explicit. This year at the Patrick John Mills Gallery, owner Patrick John Mills will be showing the colourful and sexually explicit works of Québec artist Mathieu Laca (until August 27th).
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At 29, artist and painter Mathieu Laca can pride himself on having come quite far in his chosen domain. A graduate of Concordia University’s visual arts program in 2005, his works have already appeared in several art publications and two pages have already been devoted to him in the encyclopaedia 100 Artists of the Male Figure, by E. Gibbons. Frequently shown at the Patrick John Hills gallery in Ottawa, the gallerist’s favourite artist never ceases to provoke reaction. 2B caught up with him recently…
2B: Your creations can seem provocative. Did you develop this aesthetic while you were studying at Concordia?
Mathieu Laca: When I was at school, what I wanted most was approval. I wanted my work to be appreciated and I leaned towards what I thought would look good rather than giving myself total freedom. It’s precisely in seeking to liberate myself from any pedagogical approach that I discovered my artistic personality. Today, I paint without compromise, without censuring myself.
2B: In this very sexualised homosexual aesthetic, there is an undeniable link to mythology. How did get the idea to reproduce this world in a sexual manner?
M.L. Today, we are rather chaste with art. We are easily shocked by sexuality. In the Greek or Roman eras, we can find lots of erotic imagery that explicitly described sex. We used these images to decorate buildings. People were not conditioned to be morally bothered by this imagery. Today, perhaps because of Judaeo-Christian heritage, we avoid these representations that we associate with pornography. This is precisely why I decided to illustrate an invented mythology that uses these symbols to expose, denounce, or criticise society. For example, in one of my paintings, we see a pope, dressed in a traditional costume, but who has the head of a coyote. He who is the ultimate incarnation of the shepherd suddenly becomes the enemy of the flock. It’s these types of symbols that I enjoy.
The analogy of instinct and primitive desire are stronger with animals that remind us of our origins. My objective is, in fact, to create a unique universe… Oscar Wilde said that the fable is more real than the truth. This is precisely what I am trying to reveal when I paint.
2B: This mythology necessarily adds a very excessive aspect to the erotic action that you illustrate…
M.L. My process also involves exaggerating this representation of sexuality, rendering it abhorrent, disturbing. There is a part of brutality in sexuality. There is a game where desire is a form of violence. These power dynamics that we maintain in society are also present in life. Often they can even intensify.
2B: What do you want your paintings to provoke in the viewer?
M.L. I want them to question themselves, whether they are disturbed by this vision of the world, and that is leads them to reflect. I’m not afraid of provoking or shocking people, though this is not my goal either.
2B: What is your creative process?
M.L. There is always a basic idea— generally a story to tell, a power dynamic. I reflect for a while before I start to paint. If my base idea is too provocative, it generally does not make it to the end. Shocking people for the sake of shocking people does not make for interesting material, nor is it powerful or interesting to create. That being said, when I begin to paint, I begin to transform my story into image and there are always surprises that modify what I was originally intending to do and that enrich the illustrated universe.
2B: Why is it important for you to integrate an erect penis into most of your works? How is this representation of the erect phallus symbolic for you?
M.L. For me, the erection says a lot. A penis in its natural state would not have the same expressive power. Sex can be a type of weapon. It also indicates arousal, something that is rather difficult to express in painting. But as I indicated earlier, I do not wish to paint an erection to shock the public. The representation of sexuality is something that is very strong, so its use has to be justified in the process.
2B: You are often shown at the Patrick John Mills gallery in Canada’s capital. What do you think of Ottawa?
M.L. It’s definitely a conservative city. Since it is the capital, it has to show an “immaculate” image to the country. Luckily, there are some audacious people who live there. With Patrick, owner of the gallery, I have found an extraordinary accomplice. A year ago, he literally fell in love with my work. He shows my work very often, and each time, they have a lot of success. He is not shy to show my work in the window, even if it can provoke tough reactions because of its explicit homosexual character. But Patrick deals well with controversy. What is important to him is art.
Mathieu Laca at the Patrick John Mills Gallery
August 4-27
286 Hinchey Avenue
Ottawa
(613) 729.0406
1 comment
I wanted to thank 2BMag.
Your interview was so refreshing. Well done. Great Job.
I wanted to add that it is such a joy to show Mathieu Laca’s art in my gallery. I am so proud of him. He really is an incredible artist.
His work is always in the gallery on exhibtion. Since he approached the gallery last year… his work has been in the gallery every month… in every exhibition.
Laca is so talented and hard working… it is so exciting to see his development. He is only 29 years old. Fuck. Hard to imagine where he is going in the next ten plus years.
Thank you again 2B Mag for encouraging art and culture.
best wishes
Patrick