40 YEARS IN BRIEF AND IN NUMBERS:

THE PEOPLE OF LA MÉDUSE

La Méduse has seen many people come and go. Bold visitors in the beginning, then passersby and Madelinots, of course. People who come and return. But also interns, seasonal employees, and artists from other disciplines. 

CREATION

Creation is the heart of La Méduse. The motivation to do more, to do better, to make beautiful things. Glass has quietly carved out its place in the Madelaine Islands art scene. Since its inception, La Méduse has shared the creations of its artisans on several scales. A work in progress, always being redone. Always sharing knowledge and techniques, with a workshop open to the public.

Participation in several solo and group exhibitions, local, provincial, and international.

A work from the 1% program - integration into architecture (library in Havre-aux-Maisons).

More than a dozen meetings with other professional glassmakers from around the world.

Participation in several artisan shows (Toronto, Montreal, Quebec City, Halifax, and the Îles-de-la-Madeleine).

More than 30 local and Quebec artists / artisans have exhibited at La Méduse.

Seven glassworking techniques are regularly used by the artisans at La Méduse, each artisan having their preferences:

• blown glass
• lampworking
• thermoformed glass
• glass cast in metal molds
• hot-sculpted glass
• sandblasted glass
• sand-cast glass

And how many pieces of glass are made by hand in the workshop? How many glass jellyfish are made in the glass workshop? Many, many...! The technique developed by François Turbide at the beginning, which gave its name to the company, also gives its unique character to the jellyfish of La Méduse. These paperweights are still today, 40 years later, the emblem of our blown glass workshop.

VOLUNTEER INVOLVEMENT

Through the personal and volunteer involvement of its artisans, La Méduse has contributed and continues to contribute to the cultural prominence of artists and artisans from the Îles de la Madeleine, both in the islands and in Quebec.  

Arrimage Cultural Corporation of the Îles
Board Member: 1990-1996 and 2014-2016 

Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec
Member of the Regional Committee: 1996-2001 and 2014-2020

Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec
Board Member: 2000-2006  

Société de développement des entreprises culturelles (SODEC)
Crafts Commission: 2002-2003 

Tourisme Îles de la Madeleine
Board Member: 2004-2010 and 2020-2022

And… 40 years of explanations and demonstrations of glasswork to allow people to see, experience, and understand studio work, glasswork, and the reality of artisans. 

TIME

Time has passed and continues to pass. This year it celebrates La Méduse's 40th anniversary, and who knows what it will celebrate later. It has passed through the sometimes easy, sometimes hard days of the artisan's life, to build, through perseverance and determination, the La Méduse we know. But it took time to make the right decisions.

5 years of reflection before launching La Verrerie La Méduse (1979-1984)

5 years of reflection before moving La Verrerie La Méduse (2000- 2005)

15 years of self-employment: 1985-2000 and 20 years of seasonal work (1985-2005) before incorporating the company

1 big move in 2005

15 years of year-round workshop / boutique / gallery (2005-2020)

5 years of reflection and adjustments before transferring the company to Catherine and Sophie (2015-2019)

1 major construction project and major equipment change in 2020

1 Stroke (CVA) in 2021 for Catherine

3 years of intensive rehabilitation to relearn her trade for the second time for Catherine, and Sophie, for her part, took over production alone all this time...

Now that Catherine and Sophie, the daughters of La Méduse, are more than determined to have some "FUN" in what they will undertake!!! For the best, they wish!