Biography
Florence Lemay is a visual artist from Levis, Canada. Her work has earned recognition at home and abroad through exhibitions and live painting performances. In 2024 she was a finalist in major live painting competitions in Toronto and Chicago, including a special branded edition. That same year she created a funded living mural in Levis, Canada, and was selected in a juried competition in Canada. She also presented work in London and in Monaco, where she performed live painting.
Lemay's practice explores the human figure, emotion, and body language. She is interested in what is intimate and unspoken. The paintings move between abstraction and figuration, inviting viewers to read gesture, gaze, and silence as carriers of meaning. Music shapes her process. She works to its rhythm, translating cadence and mood into movement on the surface.
Live performance is central to her path. She has painted at notable cultural events in Quebec City, Canada, including evenings that combined painting and music. Beyond her studio practice she serves her community. She acted as a regional spokesperson for Culture Days in 2022. In 2023 she opened a gallery space in Levis, Canada, to share her work and collaborate with other artists.
Lemay's practice explores the human figure, emotion, and body language. She is interested in what is intimate and unspoken. The paintings move between abstraction and figuration, inviting viewers to read gesture, gaze, and silence as carriers of meaning. Music shapes her process. She works to its rhythm, translating cadence and mood into movement on the surface.
Live performance is central to her path. She has painted at notable cultural events in Quebec City, Canada, including evenings that combined painting and music. Beyond her studio practice she serves her community. She acted as a regional spokesperson for Culture Days in 2022. In 2023 she opened a gallery space in Levis, Canada, to share her work and collaborate with other artists.
Florence Lemay's Interview Presented Eclusively by Belanger - The Collections
When did you first discover your passion for art, and how did it begin?
I’ve always been immersed in art. Since childhood, drawing played a central role in my life, especially faces and human bodies, which already fascinated me. It was my way of being fully present in the moment, finding calm and softness through the gesture. Over time, this passion naturally became a vocation. I kept painting in my studio, exploring color and texture, and ended up selling my first canvases at the age of 12.
What inspires your creativity today? Are there people, places, or moments that influence your work most?
My creativity is fueled by life itself, including music, encounters, and lived emotions. Before I paint, I like to sink into a precise atmosphere, a song, a memory, a sensation, and let that emotion guide my gestures and the colors that emerge. The artists who marked me, such as Corno, Van Gogh, and Basquiat, taught me to paint instinctively, to give full space to the strength of the gesture and the sincerity of emotion.
Can you describe your artistic style and the techniques or materials you enjoy working with?
I mainly paint with acrylics, a medium I love for its spontaneity, fast drying time, and ability to welcome different textures and techniques. My style aligns with an urban expressionist approach, blending raw energy with human sensitivity. I like to combine abstraction, geometric forms, and the presence of the human figure, often placed at the heart of my compositions. My works translate a dialogue between structure and emotion, between the chaos of the world and the search for inner balance.
What message or feeling do you hope people experience when they view your artwork?
I hope my works resonate with people and spark a sincere emotion, sometimes soft, sometimes more intense. I like the idea that viewers may recognize themselves in them, finding a fragment of their own story or sensitivity. Color plays an essential role in this. I want it to feel good, to soothe or inspire, and to convey a positive and authentic energy.
What are you most excited to explore next in your work?
I want to explore detail through momentum, finding the balance between the spontaneity of the gesture and the precision of the gaze. I hope to spend more time on each piece, letting every emotion settle fully onto the canvas. I am also inspired by the profound changes in my personal life. Experiences such as my pregnancy have brought a new sensitivity to my artistic process, one that is softer, more introspective, and that continues to enrich my work.
