Mr. Speaker, Laurent Coderre is an artist who paints and draws, but his is not a household name in Canada. However, this Quebecker is well known in London, Venice, Krakow, Los Angeles, Sydney and Zagreb, where he has earned an impressive series of prestigious distinctions and awards.
Laurent Coderre associated with such iconic Canadian painters as the Group of Seven's Varley and Jackson. What is more, this multi-talented artist caught the eye of Canadian film-maker Norman McLaren, who decided to have Coderre join the animation department of the NFB.
On November 5, the entire artistic community of Montreal and Quebec came together to pay well-deserved tribute to Mr. Coderre with the launch of the book entitled, Laurent Coderre: artiste peintre-dessinateur, written by Claude Sauvage and published by Marcel Broquet.
On behalf of all Canadians, I want to thank Laurent Coderre for his rich contribution to our society's culture and arts.