Ozias Leduc (October 8, 1864 - June 16, 1955) is one of Quebec's early painters. He was born in Saint-Hilaire-de-Rouville. Leduc produced many portraits, still lives and landscapes, as well as religious works. He is best known for his work decorating the Notre-Dame-de-la-Présentation church in Shawinigan South, a project which took him thirteen years to complete. Leduc lived a very solitary life in his home town and was dubbed "the sage of St-Hilaire". He died in Saint-Hyacinthe in 1955.

Leduc was mainly self-taught. Around 1880, he worked with Luigi Cappello, an Italian painter, on church decorations. Around 1881, he was employed at Carli, a manufacturer of statues in Montreal. Around 1883, he worked with Adolphe Rho, decorating another church, this time in Yamachiche. After that, he started working on his own on church decorations. Leduc made a brief trip to Paris and London in 1897 with Suzor-Coté, where he was influenced by some impressionists.

Leduc received an Honorary doctorate from the Université de Montréal in 1938. His legacy includes teaching Paul-Émile Borduas.

References

Images and galleries

• Gallery from the Canadian government's Cybermuse project.
• God Go With You from the Mackenzie Art Gallery
• Still-life, Study by Candlelight
• Boy with Bread
• The Young Student (also known as The Young Reader).

Information

• Short biography from the Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec.
• Very short biography on virtualmuseum.ca's Horizons project.
• Short biography from the Elliott Louis Gallery
• Biography and information on The Young Reader from Fisheries and Oceans Canada related to a stamp displaying that painting.
• Presentation of Ozias Laduc and his work on the Notre-Dame-de-la-Présentation church.

Criticism and interpretation

• An interview on Leduc with Laurier Lacroix, professor of art history at the Université du Québec à Montréal, by Compass (a "Jesuit Journal").
• An article (in French) by Michel Clerk about Leduc's contributions to public life.
• The Chapel of the Bishop's Palace in Sherbrooke: Some Preparatory Sketches by Ozias Leduc (in French), by Laurier Lacroix. Also available: a summary in English.
• The Preparatory Drawings for the Decoration of the Baptistry of Notre-Dame Church Montreal (in French), by Jean-René Ostiguy. Also available: a summary in English.
• L'oeuvre déchue (in French), by Stéphane Baillargeon, on Ozias Leduc and the Saints-Anges de Lachine church.