Maxime Cousineau-Pérusse

I am figurative expressionist artist based in Montreal, Canada.

I am currently pursuing doctoral studies in psychology at McGill University, which strongly influences my artwork. Art relates to my studies in psychology both in that it provides me with a therapeutic process, and it allows me to translate my research of the human psyche into visual form. As a self-taught artist, I have painted and drawn for as long as I can remember.

The principal concept that I wish to explore is the multiplicity of individual identity. A gap exists between the way one defines their own identity, the way they present it in different social circles, and the identity one wishes to project. These different instances of identity are merely approximations of an individual’s essence, but are nonetheless valid and important, as they agglomerate to create a complete individual identity. This idea is in line with Gestalt psychology, which states that a whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

PhD Candidate, McGill University: educational and counselling psychology

oil painting, portrait, expressionism, oil painting, portrait, expressionism