Sans titre nº 1, Paris

In the mid-1950s, Léon Bellefleur’s art production grew more intense. Relieved of his teaching duties not long before, Bellefleur took inspiration from frequent trips to Paris—evinced in the title of the present work. On a formal level, this sudden freedom is manifest in his creation of a new geometry and in his gradual, though determined, use of the spatula, a tool he favoured in subsequent works. Like many compositions produced during this period, this painting seems to emerge from darkness or twilight, as forms are broken up and proliferate into light, colourful, sinuous strands, following a topography that is both intuitive and precise. Soft swaths of white, blue sky, and spots of sunlight, like clearings in velvety though dense foliage, create stark contrasts with the heart of the work.