Guido Molinari Canadian, 1933-2004

Guido Molinari, born in 1933 in Montreal and deceased in 2004, was one of the most influential figures of postwar Canadian abstraction. Renowned for his rigorous and deeply investigative approach to painting, he played a pivotal role in the development of geometric abstraction in Canada. Working primarily in painting, Molinari developed a distinctive visual language based on vertical stripes, serial structures, and a systematic exploration of color. His work, at once austere and vibrant, is characterized by an intense focus on chromatic relationships and the viewer’s perceptual experience, positioning color as the central vehicle of meaning and emotional resonance.

Molinari’s artistic formation began at the École des beaux-arts de Montréal, within an intellectual climate shaped by the transformations of modern art and the legacy of the Automatistes. After early experiments influenced by Abstract Expressionism, he shifted in the late 1950s toward a more structured form of abstraction, becoming a leading figure of the Plasticiens movement. Through a practice grounded in repetition, discipline, and analytical rigor, Molinari sought to eliminate expressive subjectivity, allowing color and form to operate autonomously. His paintings invite slow and active looking, in which perception evolves through time, light, and the viewer’s movement.

International recognition accompanied Guido Molinari throughout his career, with exhibitions in major institutions and a significant presence in Canadian public collections. He represented Canada on the international stage and exerted a lasting influence as an educator, particularly at Concordia University, where he shaped generations of artists. His enduring legacy lies in a demanding and coherent body of work that positioned Canadian abstraction within a broader international dialogue, while affirming a radical and intellectual vision of painting as a site of perceptual and conceptual inquiry.