Francesco Iacurto, R.C.A. (1908-2001)
Born in Montreal, Iacurto show remarkable drawing skills early on, as he exhibited at the Monument National at the age of thirteen. He studied drawing in 1922 under the direction of Edmond Dionet. At fourteen, he will be the youngest student at the École des Beaux-Arts in Montreal, who opens in 1923. He will meet Jean-Paul Lemieux and will be in the same class as Paul-Émile Borduas and Sylvia Daoust.
As early as 1927, Iacurto won several prizes and in 1928 received his teaching diploma. In 1929, he obtained a scholarship for studies in Paris. Between 1965 and 1974, Iacurto taught painting and was elected a member of the Royal Canadian Academy. In 1974, he devotes himself entirely to his art and Professor Maurice Lebel pays him a particular homage in his book Souvenirs which Robert Choquette signs the preface.
The quality of the drawing, the attention to detail and the luminous character of his paintings distinguish the work of Iacurto and have been expressed in the charm that the city of Quebec has exerted on him as well as the area of Charlevoix.
His works are exhibited at the Musée du Québec , the National Gallery of Ottawa, the Canadian Senate, the Quebec Parliament, the Old Quebec Seminary, the Citadelle, the Quebec City Hall and Laval University. He died in 2001 in Sainte-Foy at the age of 93.
