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Visionary, patron of the arts, husband, father. Born May 25, 1926, in Rimouski, Que., died March 10, 2012, in Montreal of cardiac arrest, aged 85.<\/p>\n
Aubert Brillant died far from the spotlights that shone on his storied youth.<\/p>\n
In 1967, Maclean\u2019s magazine had featured him in a six-page article, describing him as a fanciful financier. His life was a true adventure story set against a backdrop of 1960s Quebec.<\/p>\n
Aubert\u2019s father, Jules-Andr\u00e9 Brillant, owned telephone, electricity, rail, transport and media networks in the Lower Saint Lawrence. When these assets were sold, Aubert inherited a considerable fortune.<\/p>\n
In 1962, aged 36, the Harvard University graduate settled in Montreal, full of ambition and looking forward to a bright future.<\/p>\n
In 1963, he founded the Galerie du Si\u00e8cle, a springboard for a cohort of now-famous young painters, including Guido Molinari, Claude Tousignant, Marcel Barbeau and Fran\u00e7oise Sullivan.<\/p>\n
The next year, he began managing Corpex (Corporation d\u2019expansion financi\u00e8re) with assets of close to $100-million, and took control of Qu\u00e9becair.<\/p>\n
He was an avid collector of contemporary art who showcased his passion on his office walls. “That wasn\u2019t done in those days. People thought I was crazy,” Aubert said in an interview with Forces magazine last year.<\/p>\n
In 1963, he helped playwright Jacques Duchesne create a small theatre to promote original plays from Quebec. He agreed to finance the project on condition the theatre be set up in Place Ville-Marie. The Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de la Place was founded in the centre of the newest skyscraper in Montreal\u2019s financial district.<\/p>\n
He spent the summer of 1964 on his yacht, La Canadienne, in Rimouski with a team of divers looking for the Empress of Ireland. Fifty years after its tragic sinking, the divers recovered many objects from the ship.<\/p>\n
Aubert\u2019s descent was as spectacular as his meteoric rise had been.<\/p>\n
The federal government assessed him for $6-million in taxes, and the provincial government claimed $7-million as a result of a court case concerning the purchases and sales of company assets.<\/p>\n
Aubert ended up winning his case, but it took 10 years. His energy sapped, he didn\u2019t blame anyone or try to recover his money.<\/p>\n
“I never really found out what had happened, or why,” he said.<\/p>\n
Aubert discovered another passion: horses. In 1966, he opened the National School of Equitation in Ste-Ad\u00e8le, and two years later created the Popular Riding School on Nuns\u2019 Island in the heart of Montreal.<\/p>\n
From his passion for horses came a wonderful love story with his wife, photographer Debra Jamroz, as well as a deep friendship with lawyer, professor, publisher and former minister Gil R\u00e9millard.<\/p>\n
Aubert, the father of MarieLine and Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric, may not have conquered Montreal, but he was blessed with lasting love and unwavering friendships.<\/p>\n
Yann Fortier is a friend of Aubert\u2019s family.<\/p>\n