Inside Jessica Boudreau’s studio, hockey lives on every wall.
Known online as JB Art MTL, the mother of three has been painting since she was a little girl, but a few years ago, her art took on a very different meaning.
“Before COVID, my son had a brain tumour and his life was saved by Sainte-Justine and the amazing doctors, Dr. Venne and Dr. Alexander Weil,” said Boudreau. “So I always wanted to do something to give back and this just came altogether.”
Wanting to thank the doctors, she painted a portrait of her son and his surgeon together. And on the back, a handwritten message from her son called the doctor his favourite superhero.
What began as a gesture of gratitude soon became a turning point.
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Over time, hockey naturally found its way onto her canvas.
“I shared my painting of Carey Price that I made when they were in the playoffs, in 2021, when they went to the finals and the NHL actually saw my painting, shared on all their social media and that’s kind of how the sports and the art kind of came together,” she said.
From that point on, her work began reaching fans in Montreal and beyond, and it wasn’t long after that when the players themselves started noticing.
First came Sean Monahan, Patrik Laine and even hockey legend Bob Gainey.
Then an emotional moment with Brendan Gallagher, when Jessica gifted him a painting of he and his mom after she died.
“I was literally just going to send him the painting and he said, ‘No, no, I want to meet you,'” said Boudreau. “He allowed me to bring my kids and they got to meet him, too, and it was just such a beautiful moment.”
And while her work stretches far beyond hockey, the Canadiens remain at the heart of her story.
Today, her son helps photograph and film the paintings that grew out of his recovery.
It’s a partnership shaped by resilience and now shared by the love of the game.
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