La Maîtrise d’Arts: Between Passion and Profession

La Maîtrise d’Arts: Between Passion and Profession

The Musée du Haut-Richelieu presents La Maîtrise d’Arts: From Passion to Profession, an exhibition tracing the history of an artists’ collective active in the 1940s, whose creations in ceramics, set design, and allegorical floats left a lasting mark on Québec’s cultural landscape.

Presented at the Musée du Haut-Richelieu, the exhibition La Maîtrise d’Arts: Between Passion and Profession offers an in-depth look at the history of an artists’ collective that emerged as a significant figure in Québec’s cultural landscape of the 1940s. Founded by five graduates of the École des beaux-arts de Montréal, La Maîtrise d’Arts distinguished itself through a diverse body of work combining ceramics, theatrical set design, and allegorical floats created for major public celebrations. The exhibition traces the origins of the collective, from its early gathering places in Montréal to its establishment in Chambly in 1946, and highlights the working methods, discipline, and complementarity that shaped its identity. Through artworks, archival material, and personal accounts, it reveals an artistic practice deeply rooted in its time, conceived both for the studio and for public space. Beyond artistic production, the exhibition places strong emphasis on the human dimension of the collective: bonds of friendship, the sharing of knowledge, and the involvement of families, collectors, and private lenders in preserving and transmitting this legacy. La Maîtrise d’Arts thus emerges as a collective adventure in which passion, profession, and heritage converge