Driving along boulevard de Comporté in La Malbaie, near the Pointe-au-Pic sector, you can’t miss this impressive house set slightly back from the road, with its attractive colours and lovely flower beds that make it stand out. The Galerie d’art Au P’tit bonheur has made its home here since 1995, following a major renovation of the building, which had stood empty and abandoned for some time before that.
Today, Marie-Éve Tremblay, owner and director since 2011, is proud to offer an art gallery that stands out for its style, its approach to clients, and the composition of its artist roster. Le P’tit Bonheur, which employs eight people, is both spacious and intimate: 6,000 sq ft of exhibition space where visitors feel they have dropped in on friends. The small lounges on the first floor and the airier rooms on the second let art lovers discover the works in a hushed atmosphere. “However impressive and inviting it may be, a gallery only finds its substance in what visitors can find there,” explains the gallery owner.
So the gallery makes a point of offering art lovers and collectors a varied, high-quality selection of figurative and semi-figurative works by some forty seasoned artists, painters and sculptors among the most renowned, from across Canada. “Our gallery aims to be an inspiring place where artists enjoy exceptional freedom. This privilege leads them to give their best. Our calling is to be both allies in their artistic achievement and leading partners in the growth of their careers,” says the director.
And we don’t change a winning formula, she adds. Holding openings or public events is out of the question at P’tit Bonheur. That’s not in its DNA. Nor is there a branch elsewhere. All the energy goes into the current gallery, whose location is certainly a major asset.
Like many successful ventures, the P’tit Bonheur story began with a family’s love affair with the world of the arts. It started in 1986, when Jacques Tremblay and Rosanne Duchesne, Marie-Ève’s parents, arrived in the beautiful Charlevoix region. They then took over the art gallery, which had been making its home, with flair, in the Salon rose of the Manoir Richelieu.
In early 1991, Jacques and Rosanne decided to take a new step in their journey as gallery owners: P’tit Bonheur was born. Determined to build the gallery of their dreams, the couple set out to renovate this old, abandoned building. They gave it a major rejuvenation, imagining every detail to create a pleasant place to be. They even added to the decor throughout the various rooms an impressive collection of hundreds of antique glass pieces belonging to the owners, arranged by style.
Marie-Ève Tremblay is proud to say that, thanks to her boldness, creativity, and the extraordinary rapport with her artists, “Galerie d’art Au P’tit Bonheur is now one of the jewels of the Canadian art world, a true cultural destination for art lovers in search of excellence.”
Another important detail to note is that the gallery has taken on the mission, and the means, of making its artists’ talent shine, especially through its website. This online showcase features no fewer than 600 original works, paintings and sculptures, along with more than a hundred limited-edition reproductions. All works shown online are available in the gallery. Regular updates let customers discover new additions there as works come in and as artists are inspired.
The gallery has nearly 30 years of experience shipping artworks. It offers free packaging for purchases to be shipped. Shipping is also free for paintings, sculptures, and reproductions sent to Canada. Finally, since its earliest days in 1986, Au p’tit bonheur has allowed customers to pay for purchases in monthly installments, with no fees or interest. "This business decision, taken in 1986 when such services were rarely advertised or accessible, marked the start of a close and lasting relationship of trust with its customers," says the gallery director.
In their well-earned retirement, Jacques and Rosanne are delighted with what their creation has become. They appreciate that their successors have carried on with the same passion that drove them throughout all the years they worked there.
Au P’tit bonheur
auptitbonheur.com
265, boulevard de Comporté
La Malbaie, Qc G5A 2Y6
418-665-2060