Art exhibition Les secrets du vent by Anne Yvonne Jouan opens in Aylmer

Tashi Farmilo

Anne-Yvonne Jouan’s newest exhibition, Les secrets du vent, is currently on view at the Espace Pierre-Debain in Gatineau, offering visitors a contemplative journey through nature’s fleeting beauty. Presented by the City of Gatineau and running from April 9 - June 1, the show features the artist’s intricate paper and plant-based sculptures, inspired by the landscapes of Île d’Orléans.

Jouan, a Franco-Canadian artist with a background in both law and art history, has built a reputation for her meditative, three-dimensional works crafted from hand-cut paper, dried vegetation, and delicate metallic pigments.

Her practice begins with the quiet act of collecting—gathering fallen petals, twigs, and leaves from the landscape around her studio on Île d’Orléans. These fragile remnants are dried, hand-colored with gold, silver, or subtle pigments, and arranged into luminous compositions that evoke both the fragility and resilience of the natural world. “It’s about experiencing the world’s constant renewal through the metamorphosis of matter,” she explains.

The exhibition includes works from her acclaimed series Les Jardins de papier, a set of four expansive dioramas that trace the shifting light across a single day. From the shimmering whites of early morning to the shadowy blues of nightfall, each piece captures a moment suspended in time. More than just visual meditations, the works speak to a reverence for overlooked materials and the quiet drama of seasonal change. “Using fragile plants and recycled paper, I try to transport viewers into a space that reconnects them with what is essential,” she said. “A place that speaks of time, of disappearance, and of rebirth.”

Originally trained as an auctioneer in France, Jouan moved to Canada in 2006 and has since earned recognition from the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. Her work has been shown in museums and public galleries across Canada, including the Musée Marius-Barbeau, the Centre national d’exposition, and the Musée des métiers d’art du Québec. In May, she will present a large-scale mural piece titled Le Soleil dans l’écume at the Grand Palais in Paris as part of the Salon Révélations. In September, a new project titled Un chant dans les arbres, reflecting on the theme of forest fires, will be unveiled following a residency in Lebel-sur-Quévillon.

The exhibition is on view at Espace Pierre-Debain, located in the Centre culturel du Vieux-Aylmer at 120 rue Principale. Admission is free. More information about the artist and her work can be found at www.ayjouan.com.

“The wind carries with it not only fragments of the seasons, but also the memory of things that pass and return,” Jouan says. “Through these fragments, I try to show that even what seems to disappear continues to breathe in another form.”