During the Middle Ages, women and craftsmanship did not go well together. Tolerated in the countryside but totally excluded in cities, craftswomen had to content themselves solely with textile work.

During this period, an official decree barred women from the training necessary for the practice of a trade. However, when a craftsman died, [Read more]

Bas-relief (from the Italian basso-rilievo) is a sculpture which slightly stands out from the base out of which it's been crafted. This form of art offers certain depth and is sometimes painted. It can be made out of various materials such as wood, stone or bronze. The most ancient bas-reliefs date back to antiquity.

Stained glass is the art of assembling glass pieces, colored or not, using lead cames to which a particular shape has been given. Flat and generally measuring between one and five millimeters in thickness, the glass pieces are first cut then set in the metal structure. They can be either transparent, monochrome or painted according to what is [Read more]

In Canada, craftsmanship enjoyed an important rise during the 50's. At the time, they advocated values of self-sufficiency, which undoubtedly fed this popularity. Utilitarian objects, or art, made by local craftsmen were then preferred to those assembled in factories.

Today, it's estimated that more than 1.5 million Canadians spend at [Read more]

The origins of sculpture in Quebec date back to the latter half of the 17th century. Local artists would be called upon to create sculpted pieces to be used to decorate churches. Wood, a plentiful resource, was the principal material employed.

Sculpture encountered difficulties when New France fell into English hands, in 1760. But the [Read more]

Contemporary Inuit art (from an ethnocentrist point of view) developed after World War II, notably thanks to James A. Houston, a young Toronto artist who had come to stay in the Great North. Observing the potential of their works, he encouraged Inuit artists to sell their creations, in order to improve their economic situation, to those in the [Read more]