Robert Poliquin
Robert’s sculptural practice revolves around a constant dialogue between transparency, density, and light. His works, made of glass, metal, and stone, serve as a meeting point between meticulous techniques and formal exploration. Glass, a material both fragile and resilient, becomes in his hands a surface of tension where the movements of the landscape, environmental resonances, and fragments of inner reflection take shape.
Each sculpture emerges from a process in which experimentation plays a central role: fusing, shaping, layering materials, and intervening in texture. Within this creative space, Robert explores how materials respond to one another, generating forms that oscillate between balance and fracture, opacity and transparency.
His approach reflects a desire to inhabit reality differently, revealing the points of contact between the external world and the imagination. The works thus become thresholds—micro-landscapes where light, material, and memory coexist—offering a contemplative experience rooted in the viewer’s sensitivity.
Robert Poliquin
Robert's sculptural practice revolves around a constant dialogue between transparency, density and light. His works, composed of glass, metal and stone, are the place of a meeting between meticulous techniques and formal research. Glass, a material that is both fragile and resistant, becomes a surface of tension where the movements of the landscape, the resonances of the environment and the fragments of an inner reflection are lodged.
Each sculpture is born from a process in which experimentation occupies a central place: fusion, shaping, superimposition of materials, intervention on texture. In this workspace, Robert explores how materials respond to each other, creating forms that oscillate between balance and fracture, opacity and transparency. His approach is part of a desire to inhabit reality differently, by showing the points of contact between the outside world and the imaginary.
The works thus become thresholds, micro-landscapes where light, matter and memory coexist, offering a contemplative experience anchored in the viewer's sensitivity.
Biography
Trained in art and design in his hometown of Winnipeg, Robert continued his journey in Montreal, where he worked as an illustrator for the Neurological Sciences Group at the University of Montreal. It was in the laboratories that he discovered, almost by chance, the expressive potential of glass while observing the precise gestures involved in heating and shaping the material. This revelation opened a new path: he left his career to settle in the Eastern Townships and devote himself fully to glass creation.
His training developed through specialized programs: glass fusing at Sheridan College in Toronto, cast glass at Espace Verre in Montreal, and later glass painting in New York under the late Albinis Elskus, a master of glass figurative art. Returning to Quebec, he opened his own studio, where he restored antique stained glass and created custom works for commercial and residential spaces, reconciling artisanal tradition with contemporary design.
Later, drawn to the sculptural possibilities of heated and fused glass, he co-founded Surface Design, a company dedicated to contemporary furniture and objects integrating glass, granite, and metal, distributed throughout Canada and the United States. Today, with a career spanning art, craftsmanship, and design, Robert continues a sculptural practice deeply rooted in mastery of his materials.
Works
