b. 1989, Canada Antoine Lortie's work revolves around the perception of the image we make up of ourselves, of others, as well as of the material world around us; the image as a rich aesthetic facade which serves as a bulwark for existence. The relationship between a mummy and its sarcophagus is a good example; the refinement of this image, especially the attention we pay to it, impoverishes, dehydrates and decomposes the substance at the heart of the envelope. "...My work embraces effect, saturation, artifice and opacity to represent the idea that the aesthetic bark of being is infallible. We will not go to the bottom of things and will continue to die ignorants, yet it is we who will have the most beautiful coffins." In 2016, Antoine Lortie obtained his MFA in painting with honors at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels and completed a Bachelor's degree in visual and media arts at Laval University in 2013. His work is part of several private collections in Canada, France, England and Belgium. The artist currently resides in Quebec City.
