My work has its origins in the ancestral methodologies and techniques of sculpture, although over time modern processes, experimentation and the association of different materials have been grafted into it. The representation of the human being is the pillar of my practice. The subject of my artistic research being man, my works are influenced by everything that touches his nature and his environment, but more particularly theology, in which the latter occupies a central place.
The tormented and frenetic times in which we live constantly immerse us in new reflections on life. Through my interest in theology, I explore the different questions that the contemporary context brings and I try to see if some lines of thought might not be found in these ancient writings. In parallel to this subject, I also seek to deepen the notions of presence or “aura” that can be conferred to an object.
—Mathieu Houde
Mathieu Houde is a visual artist working in sculpture, who have participated to the International Sculpture Biennale of St-Jean-Port-Joli in 2018. Finalist of the Prix Émergence en métiers d’art of the Prix d’Excellence du Conseil de la culture in 2020, he is currently preparing his first solo exhibition at the Art-Image gallery in Gatineau for the year 2022.
Raised in a small village called Deschaillons-sur-Saint-Laurent, religious art was mainly the art form with which he had his first contacts and this greatly influenced his work, as did the surrounding nature of his hometown, since his work is playing with the themes of theology, philosophy and the concept of “aura”. It was in his early twenties that he began technical studies in sculpture at the Maison des Métiers d´arts in Quebec City, where he developed great technical skill as well as a genuine passion for three-dimensional art.