About us...[En]

It is with enthusiasm that I bring to life the Galerie Sous Le Passe-Partout, this time online, with the technical support of a long-time friend, Antoine Maloney, and his son, Montreal artist Edward Maloney.

Returning to Montreal in 1979, following an extended stay in the United States, France and England, I was hired as an assistant to Dr Micheline Moisan, director of the Drawings and Prints Cabinet at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. As early as 1981, works of art on paper were always presented in our dining room.

Co-founder of the restaurant and bakery Le Passe-Partout, with my husband James J. MacGuire, in the Notre-Dame-de-Grâce district, in Montreal, from 1981 to 2004. It is early in1995, in the basement of our business, that officially opened the Galerie Sous Le Passe-Partout. Its name refers to the matboard surround one often sees around a work of art on paper and the name of a brush used by bakers to remove extra flour from the dough.

The gallery specializes in the field of engraving and original printmaking, favoring artists who work with traditional techniques: wood, burin, drypoint, etching, mezzotint, lithography.  

The first exhibition in 1995 presented works of Evelyn Dufour and George Ball, two former students, assistants and friends of Stanley William Hayter, founder of the famous Atelier 17 in Paris. From 1995 to 2002, 45 solo exhibitions and / or group were presented, with the essential help of madame Monique Gauthier, art historian.

During the active years of the gallery, I was part of the board of directors of the Revue Vie des Arts, directed by Mr. Bernard Lévy, under the presidency of Charles S.N. Parent; participated in the Pages book fair in Paris to present a first artist's book published by the gallery, L’écriture des Dieux, illustrated by Donatella T., produced by Tanguy Garric; collaborated with André Béguin in the distribution in Canada of his numerous technical books on printmaking; participated in several prints shows in Montreal. 

Collaborations with Atelier René Tazé, printer in Paris, James Stroud of Center Street Studio in Boston, Sheldon Landy of Derby Fine Arts Ltd. gallery from Chicago and since 1995 with Andrew Fitch and Dominique Febvrel of the Fitch-Febvrel Gallery in New York, have contributed to the gallery's success.

Thanks to Andrew Fitch, the gallery introduced the Montreal public to internationally renowned engravers including Érik Desmazières, François Houtin, Jacques Muron, Gunnar Norrman, Janet Yake. This collaboration is still ongoing.

Érik Desmazières ,President of the Société des Peintres-Graveurs, introduced me to this association which goal is to promote original engraving. I present works by several of their members as well as those of the Jeune Gravure Contemporaine association.

Dr Sean B. Murphy, son of engravers Cecil Buller and John J.A. Murphy, president of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts from 1968 to 1979 as well as Joe and Erin Battat of the Battat Contemporary Gallery contributed to the gallery's influence on the Montreal  artistic scene.

The emblem and favicon letter pair, B and L, have been drawn by Canadian artist Ludger Larose  (1868-1915).

Suzanne Baron-Lafrenière