BIOGRAPHY

His earlier years were spent in Saskatchewan. Born in Ponteix in 1947, Rene Thibault was raised and educated in the communities of Debden and Prince Albert. Upon graduating from grade twelve, he moved to Calgary where he attended the Alberta College of Art & Design for four years, earning his Diploma of Applied Arts by mid 1969.

After leaving the College, he worked for five years with a firm prominent in architectural illustration, and a few years with a company as Art Director. In 1977 he established his own firm, specializing in architectural illustration.

About 1987, Rene Thibault began to paint for its own relevance.

Much of his inspiration comes in the company of his wife Jean, with whom he has shared life's moments since they met in 1984. Whether they're indulging in the sunshine of the Greek Islands, or canoeing and hiking in the Rockies, Rene is constantly photographing elements of interest to augment his reference files. In addition, viewing the landscape from an aerial viewpoint has also influenced this artist. By chartering small aircraft, Rene has acquired reference photographs of rare views of such as the Barrier Reef off Belize, and of the Canadian Rockies. These photos form the basis from which paintings eventually emerge.

Regionally, his works have been exhibited through the Visual Arts Alberta Association and with many commercial galleries since 1989. He was represented by the Collectors’ Gallery Of Art in Calgary, AB for fourteen years. He has also been represented in numerous curated group exhibitions by the Alberta Foundation for the Arts (AFA). One of these entitled "AFA Collects: Paintings", was a two year traveling exhibition (extended to a 3rd year) which was presented in selected Alberta communities by the AFA. "I found it both inspiring and humbling to be exhibited alongside the works of such artists as Alex Janvier, Illingworth Kerr, and Stanford Perrott".

Nationally, he has participated in numerous juried group exhibitions with each of the following: the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour, of Toronto (elected a Member in 2002); the Federation of Canadian Artists, of Vancouver (initially an Active Member from 2001, and granted AFCA Signature Status in 2007); and the Society of Canadian Artists, of Toronto (elected a Member in 2003). He has been recipient of jury awards in many of these exhibitions.

Internationally, he has been juried into numerous group exhibitions by the following: the Royal Watercolour Society, of London, UK; the National Watercolor Society, of San Pedro, CA; the Philadelphia Water Color Society, of Philadelphia, PA; the Salmagundi Club at the Center for American Art in New York, NY (awarded a Certificate of Merit by the jury).

In 2004,Rene Thibault was invited by International Artist Publishing (Australia) to contribute a page to their new book entitled "100 Ways to Paint Flowers & Gardens". His piece entitled "Flowers with Early Snow" was featured, along with the works of 99 other artists from numerous countries. "To be acknowledged in this manner is a fine endorsement of one's work."

In 2007, he was one of the artists privileged to be featured in the June / July Issue of the International Artist Magazine. The article presented numerous paintings by the artist, along with some insight into his approach to his work.

The paintings of this artist hang nationally and internationally in various corporate and private collections, and form part of the collections of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, the Diploma Collection of the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour, and the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies.