August 2025: last month to see Tribute to Rosa Luxemburg in the Pierre Lassonde Pavilion

Jean Paul Riopelle’s masterpiece, Tribute to Rosa Luxemburg, has lived in the Pierre Lassonde Pavilion since 2016. However, after August 31, 2025, the monumental work of art will soon be leaving its glass case in the Grande Allée for restoration and storage until it is displayed in the new Espace Riopelle, which is slated to open to the public in the fall of 2026.

Celebrating the national collection's seminal work

Thanks to a grant from the Ville de Québec, the top floor of the new building will become a showcase for Riopelle’s famous triptych. For the first time since it was created in 1992, the 40-metre-long work will benefit from a striking, innovative display. Its three sections will be arranged in a circle in a room with a panoramic view of the Musée’s natural surroundings, accompanied by a unique aromatic experience.

A masterpiece enhanced by scent

This special presentation of Tribute to Rosa Luxemburg, which will take pride of place at the top of the new building devoted to Riopelle’s work, will be complemented by an unparalleled experience created by the Museum Innovation Incubator thanks to financing from the Secrétariat à la Capitale-Nationale.

Since 2023, this unique project has been led by internationally renowned sommelier and aroma specialist François Chartier—a leading authority on the science of molecular harmonies—along with the Chartier World LAB and the Musée’s own teams. It will take guests beyond the visual and appeal to a sense rarely used in museums, immersing them in the wonderful world of scent thanks to a device in the display. This aromatic experience will embody both the spirit of the place and Riopelle’s vision of forging strong ties between art, nature, the senses (including smell!), and emotions.

Riopelle’s masterpiece was created in a frenzy of spray paint and acrylics in his Île-aux-Oies studio after he learned of the death of American painter Joan Mitchell (1926–1992), his former partner with whom he shared 25 years of his life. It forms a narrative sequence of 30 paintings and is truly a piece worth experiencing fully. “Smell has always been closely tied to other senses and experiences. Scents have this unique ability to evoke feelings and bring up memories,” explains François Chartier. “They break the ties between the visible and the invisible. It’s an exceptional way of getting people to form images of their own,” he adds. This new sensory dimension will enhance the crown jewel of the MNBAQ’s collection like never before.

Until the Espace Riopelle opens

Visitors have just one more month—until August 31, 2025—to (re)visit Jean Paul Riopelle’s iconic work in the Pierre Lassonde Pavilion. Would you like to say goodbye until it is ready to be displayed in the Espace Riopelle in 2026? Stop by the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec today.

Photo 1: Jean Paul Riopelle, Tribute to Rosa Luxemburg (detail), 1992. Acrylic and spray paint on canvas, 155 × 4039 cm (set). MNBAQ, artist donation (1996.96) © Jean Paul Riopelle estate / CARCC, Ottawa, 2025.

Photo 2: Bruce Damonte // Model of the future Espace Riopelle. Les architectes fabg

Photo 3: François Chartier in Jean Paul Riopelle’s studio in the Laurentians. Photo: © Courtesy of Chartier World LAB