Cormier, Klayrine

Technique: Mixed media

Klayrine Cormier studied fashion design at LaSalle College in the late 1980s. It was during this time that this designer’s fate began to take shape. With a grant from the Quebec Ministry of Culture, she flew to Paris in 1992 for an internship, learning from master hatters and milliners renowned in theatre, haute couture, and ready-to-wear (Opera Garnier, Bastille Opera House, Échap’mode and Chérie Bibi studios). This learning experience was fundamental, and her collection of MADEMOISELLE K hats was launched in 1994. Her creations revolutionized millinery in Quebec. Her innovative design, quality and originality captured the attention of the fashion world, the media and the general public. Klayrine Cormier has won several awards and distinctions in Toronto, Montreal and Quebec City (Best Contemporary Craft at the One Of A Kind Show in Toronto, the Award for New Talent at the S.M.A.Q (Quebec arts and crafts show) in Montreal, and the Quebec City Plein Art Award of Excellence). Her Mademoiselle K hat collections were purchased by the Cirque du Soleil for three years to be sold as tie-in merchandise at shows in the United States, Asia and Europe.

Klayrine Cormier approaches painting with naivety and spontaneity, yet her finished creation exhibits a studied composition highlighted by vivid colours and applied to a textured background. She elevates figurative or abstract scenes to depict imaginary forces and transport the viewer into a world of passion, depth and sensitivity. Klayrine Cormier has a varied body of work that explores the contrast of forms and colours by merging and diffusing her subjects and tones.