Chantal Boucher uses art to face her shadow
By Paul Breschuk
Lance Writer
September 10, 2008
 In previewing the work of Chantal Boucher, an up-and-coming talent from the University of Windsor, I was surprised to learn that the September exhibition would mark the first in her career. It seems that after an intensive summer of painting, she has finally succumbed to the prodding of her fans and prepared a selection of her work for viewing.
Her show, Facing Your Shadow, is a collection of oil and acrylic paintings that range from abstraction, pointillism, geometrical explorations, and other more figurative renderings which capture the human form in various states.
An extreme example of such bodily dissection is found with the painting, “The Pain You Can’t See,” which features a woman’s naked torso. Within the custom box frame are multiple canvases, acting as layers of flesh and musculature. Multiple wounds, ranging in size and location, allow the viewer to delve beyond the surface and see a naked heart (as well as the gallery wall in behind). Thus, by completely seeing through the body, the viewer leaves the painting without finding any concrete evidence of pain.
However, aren’t the gaping flesh holes themselves sites of pain? Are they the self-inflicted manifestations of pain that a cutter seeks as manageable visual evidence? Amid this backdrop, Boucher reveals that her other love, psychology (her program of study at the university), plays a major role in her work: “Human functioning has always intrigued me. Not only do I get my inspiration from theorists … Carl Jung for example… but also through the simple observation and experience of everyday behavior.”
As her paintings deal with both the pleasant and the macabre (sunbursts and bloody tears), Boucher offers an unadulterated view into her psyche. “It can be very challenging but also very rewarding to confront personal fears and anxieties … essentially the dark side of our personalities, or our ‘shadow’… and I definitely try to illustrate this in my work.”
Another cerebral aspect of her work are the writings she’s assembled above each painting. These words, often asking introspective questions, point out the various ironies in how we understand both the paintings and ourselves.
With her predilection for creative writing, Boucher’s words play a critical role in the production of her work. She explains that after receiving the preliminary inspiration, her first instinct is to write about it. Such writings are then used “as a foundation in determining a way to express that inspiration through paint.”
A coming-out party of sorts, this premiere features a deceptively wise and polished talent. In fact, it was shocking to see the degree of refinement in a supposed ‘new-comer.’
It becomes obvious, then, that the little experience she’s had in exhibiting is made up for by years of careful study. With practice being the most important type of experience, Boucher has obviously devoted much time and energy to her painting. Proof of such hard work can be found on the walls of the Common Ground Gallery (located at Mackenzie Hall, 3277 Sandwich St. W.)
“Facing Your Shadow” runs until Sept. 17 with the opening reception on Sept. 13 at 7 p.m.
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