About

Biography

Johanne Brouillette is a Canadian abstract painter whose richly layered oil paintings invite collectors into immersive, emotionally charged landscapes of colour and texture. Her dynamic compositions—built through instinctive gestures, palette knife work, and raw physical engagement—merge the spirit of the natural world with the expressive freedom of abstraction.

After nearly two decades painting representational landscapes, Brouillette turned to abstraction, drawing deep inspiration from the Automatistes—Riopelle, Borduas, and Ferron. In this lineage, she has developed a bold, tactile language rooted in automatism and shaped by her surroundings in the Laurentians. Her works reflect seasonal shifts in form and palette, offering visual meditations of memory, place, and sensation.

With a career spanning over 28 years, Brouillette is a jury-elected member of both the Society of Canadian Artists and the Federation of Canadian Artists. Her paintings have been exhibited in more than 90 regional, national, and international juried exhibitions, earning numerous awards—including the prestigious Antoinette Stevens Medal for Best in Show (2020). Her work has been featured in House & Garden (UK), Spotlight Contemporary Art Magazine (France), and Art Folio Annual (US).

Brouillette’s work is held in significant public and private collections including the Montreal Neurological Hospital, Alzheimer Society of Canada, Jean Lapointe Foundation, Principal Financial Group (USA), and Merchants Bonding (USA). For collectors seeking abstract painting that balances energy with meditative stillness, Brouillette offers a powerful and distinctive voice in contemporary Canadian art.

She currently lives and works in the Laurentians with her husband and two small dogs.

Artist Statement

My large-format abstract paintings are imbued with intense raw emotion and quiet tranquility. Technically, the work is non-representational, but to say this would be a disservice to the countless natural inspirations in my daily life. Each painting is created in a gestural, expressionistic style, yet references the highly influential Canadian landscape around me.

Nature has always been a part of my life, most notably my summers spent at our family waterfront cottage in the Laurentians. I enjoy observing seasonal changes, allowing different textures, colours and shapes of trees and leaves to influence my work.

My paintings are created with thick multilayered, heavily textured oils that can take weeks, months and even years of building. I rarely use brushes, preferring the physical act of moving, scraping and removing paint with palette knives. The painting can go through many lives or “seasons”, changing drastically during the process, depending where my inspiration takes me. My hope is that my abstracted landscape paintings hint at something familiar, yet remain open ended to allow the viewer’s imagination to complete the story.

”I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way – things I had no words for.”

Georgia O’keeffe

Curriculum Vitae

Gallery Representation

Chase Art Gallery, Montréal, Québec, 2025-
Paula White Diamond Art Gallery, Kitchener, Ontario, 2020-
Claremont Contemporary Art, London, UK 2019-
Moberg Art Gallery, Iowa, United States, 2019-
Denison Art Gallery, Toronto, Ontario, 2019-2021
Pauline T. Paquin Art Gallery, Saint-Sauveur, Québec, 2018-2021
Le Bourget Art Gallery, Montréal, Québec, 2019-2020
Galerie 806 Mt-Tremblant, Québec 2018-2020

Invitational Exhibitions

2025 – Square Foot Exhibition, White Galleon Gallery in collaboration with Armstrong Art Consulting, St-Catherines, ON
2025, 2024, 2023, 2022 – Big Ideas Show Spring and Fall, Paula White-Diamond Gallery, Kitchener, ON
2022 – Contemporary Abstraction, Moberg Gallery, Iowa, USA
2022 – Square Foot Show, Paula White-Diamond Gallery, Waterloo, ON
2021 – Summer Group Show, Moberg Gallery, Iowa, USA
2021 – Summer Invitational Group Show, Red Sheep Gallery, New York, USA
2021 – Spring Invitational Group Show, Red Sheep Gallery, New York, USA
2021 – Contemporary Women Paint: Abstract Expressions, Moberg Gallery, Iowa, USA
2021 – Diverse Voices, Artists of the Artist’s Voice, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
2020 – Group Christmas Show, Moberg Gallery, Iowa, USA
2019 – Kicking Abstract and Taking Names, Moberg Gallery, Iowa

Solo Exhibitions

2023 – Changing Seasons, RedSheep Gallery, https://redsheepgallery.com
2018 – Abstract Expressionism, Cailuan Art Gallery, Cornwall, ON
2018 – Notre point de vue n’est qu’une réalité, Piedmont, QC
2017 – Regarde-moi, je suis là, St-Faustin Culture, QC
2017 – Langage abstrait, St-Hippolyte Library, QC

Jury Selected Exhibitions

2024 – Collective Expressions, PWD Gallery, Kitchener, ON
2024 – Squarefoot Group Exhibition, WhiteGalleon Art Gallery, Thurhold, ON
2022 – August Abstract Show, Julia Veenstra, Hamilton, ON
2021 – Abstract2, Square Foot Online Exhibition, Julia Veenstra, Hamilton, ON
2021 – Mascouche Arts Festival, Online Edition, QC
2021 – Best Largescale Artwork, Gallea, Montreal, QC
2021 – Curators’ Selection Gallea, Montreal, QC
2021 – Montreal Artists, Gallea, Montreal, QC
2021 – Mardi Gras, Gallea, Montreal, QC
2020 – Square Foot Online Exhibition, Julia Veenstra, Hamilton, ON
2020 – Federation of Canadian Artists, Limitless Exhibition, Federation Gallery, Vancouver
2020 – Society of Canadian Artists Annual Elected Members Exhibition, Pointe Claire, QC
2020 – 4^th Annual Group Summer Show, Blue Crow Art Gallery, Toronto, ON
2020 – Federation of Canadian Artists, Social Distancing Exhibition, Federation Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2020 – Society of Canadian Artists, Annual International Juried Exhibition, https://societyofcanadianartists.com
2019 – Square Foot and Big Ideas Exhibition, Paula White Diamond Art Gallery, Waterloo, On
2019 – 51st Juried Exhibition, Society of Canadian Artists, Viva Vida Art Gallery, Pointe-Claire, QC
2019 – Vancouver Salon, Elected Members of the Federation of Canadian Artists, Canadian Federation Art Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2019 – Small Works Exhibition, Elected Members of the Federation of Canadian Artists, Canadian Federation Art Gallery, Vancouver, BC
2019, 2018 – Mascouche Arts Festival, QC
2018 – 33e Visual Arts Exhibition, Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines, QC
2019, 2018, 2017 – Expo-auction FASS art Saint-Sauveur, Galerie Rod, Saint-Sauveur, QC
2018, 2017 – Expo-Concert in Mirabel, Mirabel, QC
2017 – Acquisition of permanent works for the city of Blainville, Blainville Art Gallery, QC
2017 – Rendez-vous Art-thé, Salle polyvalente de la gare de Piedmont, QC

Group Exhibitions

2022 – Fall Exhibition St-Sauv-Art; Saint-Sauveur, QC
2018, 2019 – Annual Exhibit and Art Contest, ALPAP; Laval, QC
2017, 2018 – Annual Juried Exhibition, St-Faustin Culture Centre; QC
2017, 2018 – Accessible Art, St-Faustin Culture Centre; QC
2016 – 2019 – Annual Art Exhibit, Blainville Art Gallery; Blainville, QC
2016 – Exposition Un monde de couleurs, at the gallery l’Artiste; Montreal, QC
2016 – 5 couleurs, gare de Piedmont, QC
2016 – Envolées artistiques de la Galerie ARTrium, Mirabel, QC

Awards

2020 – Best in Show, Antoinette Stevens Award, Society of Canadian Artists, Elected Members Annual Exhibition
2020, 2021 – Best Emerging Abstract and Contemporary Artist of the Year, Folio Annual
2020 – Honorable Mention, Artist of the Year, Circle Foundation For the Arts, 2019
2019 – Best Global Quality Abstract Art, Césure International Competition
2018 – The Gold brush at the Annual Exhibition in Mirabel
2017 – 3rd place at the Annual Exhibition at the St-Faustin Culture Centre
2016 – 2nd place at the Annual Exhibition of Blainville-Art

Memberships and Affiliations

Federation of Canadian Artists, Active member (FCA)
Society of Canadian Artists. Elected member (SCA)
Blainville-Art, Professional Category (BVA)
Saint-Sauveur Artist Association (Saint-Sauv’Art)

Publications

2021 – Folio Annual, 2nd Edition, Best Emerging Abstract Artist of the Year
2020 – Folio Annual, Inaugural Edition, Best Emerging Abstract Artist of the Year
2019 – House & Garden (UK), Art Edit
2019 – Circle Arts Foundation for the Arts, Vol. 15, Spotlight Magazine, France

Media

2023 – CanvasRebel Magazine, Meet Johanne Brouillette
2021 – Visionary Project, The February Artist Selection: 3 Artists We Love, New York, NY
2020 – Featured Artist Johanne Brouillette, Bold and Striking Abstract Art, Artsy Shark
2019 – Citiview Des Moines News, Female Artists Dominate the Galleries
2019 –Artsy Shark, Summer Showcase Artist Feature, August
2019 – Magazine Bonjour, Remax Laurentides
2017 – Journal Le Sentier, Brouillette en expo solo: Je suis là- Regarde-moi, St-Hippolyte

Corporate and Private Collections

Worldwide.