BONNYVILLE – Throughout his life and during uncertain times, Bonnyville artist Denis Vasseur has expressed his view of the world through various art forms.
Dabbling in a wide range of mediums and styles while predominately self-taught, Vasseur is known for his landscapes, impressionist pieces and abstract creations.
“I don't have a favourite, that's why I do it all,” he said. “I do sandblasting on glass, I really enjoyed that. (I) welded with steel and painted steel and enjoyed that. I've done little sculptures, I've done clay. I've worked with watercolor, oils.”
One medium he intentionally stays away from is acrylics. “No, no, no, what the hell do you want to work with acrylics for if you have watercolors,” he said, laughing.
Standing over his most recent works of art in his Bonnyville studio and framing workshop, Vasseur is surrounded by over 50 years of his own body of work.
“There is probably at least one piece for every year since I left high school here,” he told Lakeland This Week.
Much of Vasseur’s art is influenced by biblical themes, the perils of the opioid epidemic, and for the last two years, a new subject to explore – the Coronavirus pandemic and the push for global inoculation against the disease.
“It's strictly my thoughts,” said Vasseur as a disclaimer for his unique, and at times explicit, works of art on sensitive subject matters.
Although every piece has an underlying message, Vasseur rarely includes titles with his artwork because he hopes the audience will continue to dive into the minute details embedded into each piece, separating his work from other abstract artists.
“Whoever looks at my pieces of art, I hope they find every ‘What does that mean?’”
And each piece does have meaning woven into it. The Bonnyville artist challenges societal practices and the status quo. He poses questions related to creation, the human soul, illness, what happens after death and what does ‘truth’ really mean.
“Knowing the way the world is, anything written in the history books, is it really true? Yeah, there is a part of truth. The rest is made to sell. The rest is made to intrigue the reader. Come and read more,” he described, adding that his work attempts to capture that same level of audience interest.
In many ways, Vasseur has dedicated his life to art. From entering artwork at agricultural fairs as a child, to running an after-class art club in Duclos School while he had worked in the janitorial department.
“I would win for seconds and thirds and that was my summer spending money,” he recalled, adding that he would win between $1-3 per contest entered.
But with the financial responsibility of raising a family, Vasseur never had the opportunity to pursue his art full-time.
“I became a janitor hoping that the art would take off.” And while there were periods when Vasseur was commissioned for his detailed sandblasting work and paintings, or traded artwork for needed items like tires, other priorities always took precedent.
“My whole life raising kids was worrying about paying the taxes, got to pay the mortgage, got to pay for your vehicle, got to keep food in their mouth. But now they're all grown up – now it's time for me to get out there and keep doing the art,” he said, with a smile.
Whether his art sells or not, he will continue to create it. He says it would be nice to find a place to showcase his work, or perhaps meet a collector interested in his unique style.
“I look at my life now, I'm at the point where life for me, it is not quantity, it's going to be quality.”
Vasseur now spends the majority of his time at a homestead in northern Alberta, away from town living and the grips of the internet, he says. Hunched over his table, he spends multiple days working on a piece that may be no bigger than a sheet of paper.
A far cry from the napkin art he would create in his younger years.
“If I had the money to tip the waitress I normally would, but other nights if I had nothing extra, I would leave a picture – a napkin art. To this day, I'd be curious to see how many survived?” he said.
One sketch by Vasseur that has survived multiple decades is a portrait of Jody Centazzo, the current principal of Duclos School.
The portrait was drawn while she was still in high school, Centazzo recalls, which she still has to this day.
Over the years, Vasseur says both his faith and his art have been a cure for fear in uncertain times and something to reflect on as he continues to pursue his work.
