MICHEL GUERIN: March 2012

Monday, March 19, 2012

Background painting for Asterix, Berlin

Background paintings for Asterix, Paris

Tree studies for Asterix

MICHEL GUERIN - Biography

Michel was born in the province of Saintonge, in the south-west of France. He has lived in Canada since 1968. Painting and drawing have always been Michel's passion. Michel attended a private Arts School and the school of Beaux-Arts in France, where he studied illustration, design and sculpture. Although, gaining a great deal of formal experience there, his artistic skills were mostly developed in the field. During his teenage years he designed commercial posters and various illustrations. Later; in the French army, for his national service, he created illustrations for military magazines .

His career in feature animated films began in Montreal ( Canada ) as a Background Artist for "THE LITTLE MERMAID", "THE HAPPY PRINCE", "THE REMARKABLE ROCKKET". Further features credits in Canada and the USA include "RAGGEDY-ANNE AND ANDY" in New York, "HEAVY METAL", short feature and TV specials like "HIAWATHA", "IMPERIAL OIL" , "THE RACCOONS AND THE LOST STAR", "CHRISTMAS RACCOONS", "THE NEW MISADVENTURES OF ICHABOD CRANE", "TUKIKI AND HIS SEARCH FOR A MERRY CHRISTMAS", "THE LITTLE BROWN BURRO", as well as "THE RACCOONS" series and several commercials and TV spots.

He then relocated to PARIS , France, to develop three feature films as Head of the Background Department . These films included "ASTERIX Vs. CAESAR" , "ASTERIX IN BRITAIN" and "ASTERIX OPERATION GETAFIX". Michel then returned to Canada and worked on "THE NUTCRACKER" feature film, in OTTAWA, Canada.

In 1990, Michel worked as Art Director , on the latest Asterix feature film:

"ASTERIX IN AMERICA" in BERLIN , Germany, and from 1998 to 2001 he worked on "HEAVY METAL F.A.K.K. 2" in MONTREAL, Canada, and on "GENNARINO IL MASTINO" in ROMA, Italy.

Michel enjoys the outdoors and spends most of his free time hiking in the woods and painting Canadian landscapes, either in water colour, acrylic, or his preferred media of oil on canvas. Currently he also acts as part-time Consulting Professor teaching in Storyboard, layout and Background Art for animated films, at college Boreal, in SUDBURY (Ontario).

His paintings are available at the ART FOR YOU STUDIO, in Evansville (Ontario) and have been shown and sold by other galleries in Quebec and Ontario .