The notion of space as a social construct is central to Marie-Claire Blais's practice. Space is approached both as architecture and as the infinite boundaries of the universe (stars, planets, galaxies). Light is a recurring theme in Blais's work, a unifying thread running through the different chapters of her body of work. Light can take the form of colour in a series such as Brûler les yeux fermés, or the literal light that pierces the woven textiles in Entrevoir le jour.
In more recent series, Marie-Claire Blais combines her interest in painting, sculpture and weaving. In Être la porte qui s'ouvre (2016), the canvases were first covered with multiple layers of jute. Various colours are then applied in successive layers using aerosol paint. The result is luminous, almost diaphanous surfaces, where subtle chromatic variations animate the play of illusion that unfolds. Finally, the works on show in spring 2020 bear witness to the artist's interest in sculpture. These recent paintings call on the third dimension to accentuate the chromatic shimmer of the surfaces. At times lacerated and hanging, at others emerging from the wall through folding or moulding, the colour-saturated surfaces bring to the fore a materiality exacerbated by the artist's meticulous manipulations, which require several months of studio work. The notion of space remains essential to this process, which decompartmentalises the practice of painting and examines the relationship between the exhibition space and the work of art.
Blais' work has recently been presented in solo exhibitions at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (2025), Blouin Division Gallery (2023), and Fondation Guido Molinari (2021). The artist's works can be found in a number of collections, including those of the Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal, the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, the National Bank, Hydro-Québec, Desjardins, and the Royal Bank of Canada.