Guy Michon "Play-Ground" Abstract Oil on Canvas

Updated September 5, 2026

Artist: Guy Michon (Canadian, 1925–1979) Title: Play-Ground Date: 1967 Medium: Oil on Canvas Signed: Lower right; signed, titled and dated verso Canvas Size: 40" × 30" (101.6 × 76.2 cm) Framing: Contemporary natural wood gallery frame A significant and visually commanding original abstract oil on canvas by noted Canadian modernist Guy Michon, executed in 1967 and titled "Play-Ground." The painting is signed lower right and further signed, titled, and dated on the reverse, providing excellent documentation and authenticity.Created during one of Michon's most mature and innovative periods, Play-Ground demonstrates the artist's mastery of colour, texture, and gestural abstraction. Dynamic sweeping brushwork is layered against bold geometric colour fields of emerald green, cobalt blue, and warm ochre over a dramatic monochromatic ground. Rich impasto passages and expressive linear markings create remarkable depth while balancing spontaneity with formal structure. The composition reflects the influence of Quebec's post-war abstract movement while remaining unmistakably Michon's own. Artist Biography Guy Michon (1925–1979) was an important Canadian abstract painter born in Montreal, Quebec. After completing his classical education, he became associated with Paul-Émile Borduas and members of the influential Automatistes movement before studying under Jacques de Tonnancour at Montréal's École des Beaux-Arts. His work evolved into a highly personal form of Abstract Expressionism characterized by bold palette-knife work, rich surface textures, and dynamic compositional structure. Michon exhibited widely throughout Canada and was represented by the prestigious Dominion Gallery in Montreal. His paintings are held in numerous important public and private collections, including the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, cementing his place among Quebec's leading post-war abstract artists. Today, Guy Michon's works continue to attract strong collector interest, particularly large, dated canvases from the 1960s that exemplify the vitality of Quebec's modernist movement.

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