Still more stuff seen around town

Howdy!

Plymouth Deluxe on Centre Street
Plymouth Deluxe on Centre Street

Circa 1946 – 1950 quite possibly the same type of car the Lee Petty drove. It’s at 2001 Centre street in Pointe Saint Charles.

More stuff seen around town

Howdy!

A Montreal Totem Pole
A Montreal Totem Pole

This is one of four totem poles that I know of that are standing in the city. The others are at the McCord Museum, Ile Saint Helene, and the third at L. Villeneuve & Cie. This one is in Parc Maisonneuve at the corner of Viau and Sherbrooke E. It was made and errected by the Boy Scouts.

Montreal Totem Pole Plaque
Montreal Totem Pole Plaque

Stuff seen around town

Howdy!

A Northern Telecom Centurion Pay Phone
A Northern Telecom Centurion Pay Phone

The phone is about 30 to 35 years-old, and is on the corner of Peel and René Lévesque. I get a kick out of seeing antiques still in use. Notice how there is no electronic display. When it was installed phone calls were still 10¢.

J’aimerais pouvoir rire by and with Angela Laurier

Howdy!

I’m not certain which “Family Affair” is more appropriate. The one by Sly and the Family Stone

Or the one starring Brian Keith, Sebastian Cabot, Kathy Garver, Anissa Jones and Johnny Whitaker.

Or It’s Just Wrong from the Howard Stern Show.

OK, let me backtrack a little bit. Last Wednesday I went to Usine C to see a performance by Angela Laurier. She’s a contortionist, who also used to be a child performer on TV in Canada

In between being a child performer on TV in Canada and mounting her second traveling contortionist stage show she worked for a bunch of different circuses (circii?), did some Shakespeare for Robert Lepage and a whack of other pretty impressive stuff that I did not know until after the show.

This was/is the third show (I think) that she has made having to deal with her family (I didn’t see Mon Grand Frère, but I did see Déversoir [spillway for the squareheads in the house] and there might be others that I am not aware of) but the first with her family. Besides Ms. Laurier, her brother Dominique acts in it, her sister Lucie directed it, and another sister, Charlotte did some filming for the show.

Apparently most of this is common knowledge to fans of Quebecois theatre. But as I am a bloke, it was all news to me. I’m not a big fan of theatre to begin with, and French theatre even less so. I’m not certain how to handle it. On one side, I’d like to think that each and every performance stands on its own merits and is independent of anything else, and as a consequence I’ve almost kind of been able to to train myself to to go into any performance without any expectations. On the other side, I’m kind of miffed, or maybe surprised, at myself. I would have figured that I would have been more aware of Ms. Laurier’s ranking within the galaxy of Quebecois vedettes. But obviously I don’t.

But enough of the backstory. What about the show itself?

I was surprised that it wasn’t a full house, I’ve kind of gotten used to the concept that opening nights for dance shows (of dance-like shows) have fannies in every seat. I’m not certain what to think. Is it a case where they couldn’t find people? Or did they decide that paying customers were more important? The stage was covered in some sort of white cloth with what looked like two skate ramps at either end. Which I promptly forgot when the lights went down. Because my notes read: “smoke machine, way cool.”

In retrospect the Laurier sisters had come up with a “way cool” effect. One of the “skate ramps” was something like in industrial fan, which then blew air underneath the white cloth, making it ripple quite fast, which in turn in the darkness made it look like smoke from dry ice streaming across the stage. I need to remember that for the next time I do something on stage.

I identified eight separate parts. I’m not certain if I would go so far as to classify them as scenes or acts. Perhaps if I wanted to get fancy, vignettes. But I think I’m most comfortable with “parts.”

In the first part, Angela Laurier is underneath the cloth on one of the things that I was calling a skate ramp. In this case it wasn’t a fan either, but a pedestal with a recessed spotlight, so the shadows cast as Ms. Laurier contorts underneath the cloth are not only quite dramatic, but also not that easy to decipher. Kind of like a living x-ray, if you get my drift.

Angela Laurier in J'aimerais pouvoir rire, phot by Gilles lefrancq
Angela Laurier in J'aimerais pouvoir rire, phot by Gilles lefrancq

In the second part, she comes out from underneath the cloth and continues contorting. (Unlike dance, where I know the words like plié and pirouette but don’t quite know how to use them to describe the action on stage, I don’t even know a single contorting term, so you’re just going to have to bear with me on this.) For some reason or another, I thought she kind of looked like a young Elizabeth Taylor.

Elizabeth Taylor photo copped from toptenz.net
Elizabeth Taylor photo copped from toptenz.net

But now upon looking at pictures of Elizabeth Taylor, I think I should modify it slightly so that the word “glamorous” is involved as well.

She alternates between underneath the cloth and not underneath the cloth moving and contorting in ways that I would have never thought off. At one point she “walks” with her legs straight up in the air, kind of like you’d imagine a double amputee would “walk.” There’s another time where she balances on the edge of the pedestal upside down. In between there are moments where it looks like she might be masturbating, or posing like a bodybuilder.

While all of this is happening she’s dressed in a pair of skin colored shorts and the soundtrack is for the most part some sort of looped guitar.

Then she hops off the pedestal and rolls it off stage. A video that is some kind of family photo album (a sure sign that it is a new and different part) starts. Her brother (or what I presume is her brother as I have never spoken to him) talks over the video, explaining himself. There are some humorous moments (there are nine Laurier siblings) and an early ballet recital by Ms. Laurier. The video is projected on a scrim and as it finishes there are these large shadows projected on it just before it drops, and Ms. Laurier and her brother Dominique are seated and clothed. There’s a second scrim behind them where it becomes possible to see a band playing. And then it starts to get weird.

Ms. Laurier and Mr. Laurier start walking around in circles, sit back down, she moves the chairs loudly, and then starts spinning her hands around like a windmill. As she’s spinning her hands they begin to get very red. Unfortunately I can’t find any video to accurately give you an idea of what she does with her hands. And I have no idea if it is due to something having to do with all the blood in her arms moving to her hands because of the centrifugal force. Or if there is some sort of fancy lighting effect being used (Richard Croisé gets credit as the lighting director, and he is pretty gosh-darn good). She then continues in what I noted were probably extremely difficult movements.

There’s a duet of sorts between Ms. Laurier and Mr. Laurier, which strangely enough got applause from the audience. And then another video, this time not some family slide show, but of Ms. Laurier heavily oiled up and contorting. It’s a very disorienting video, where I found myself not always certain of what body part I was looking at. Some more people walked out at this point (I didn’t note down when the first couple left, sorry).

And then it goes over the top. As I wrote, Ms. Laurier is “in a sheet with dramatic lighting and a reverse shadow time lapse something or other.” No, even now I have no clue what it was that I actually saw. I’m convinced that it was interesting and well done. I just for the life of me can’t figure out what exactly was happening as it was happening. (I told you Richard Croisé was pretty gosh darn good at what he did.) There’s something where Mr. Laurier is drawing on something where Ms. Laurier is moving, but you can see something else that might be Ms. Laurier, or might be something else. Suffice it to say, I was both very impressed and very confused. And then it’s over.

I’m not quite certain what J’aimerais pouvoir rire is exactly about, other than family is complicated. (And sorry, for the squareheads reading, I should have translated the title much earlier; it means “I’d like to be able to laugh.”) I’m always transfixed by Ms. Laurier’s productions for a variety of reasons. One is the extremely simple fact that contortionists are like the proverbial three-headed goat. You gotta look. The second is that for the most part I’ve been brought up to view contortionists as part of the “freak side show.” This is due to the three-headed goat effect, and because there hasn’t been any tradition of using contortion to tell a story. Much like a statue, contortionists are there to be looked at. However, Ms. Laurier’s productions are not “freak side shows.” They definitely have a story to tell, it’s just that I haven’t quite figured out how to interpret the method that she is using to tell the story. Almost like listening to someone read a poem out loud in a foreign language, or using your hands to understand a sculpture.

La forêt civilisée & Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau

Howdy!

A little bit cliched, but one of my favorite pieces of public art in town.

Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau

More information on Roger Gaudreau can be found here.

Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau

In the spring and summer, the grass does not get mowed so you need to look close in order to find it.

Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau

And while Le jardin punk is fine as a name, I think I would have preferred if M. Gaudreau had punned off of Rocher-Percé in the Gaspé.

Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
Le jardin punk by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau

I’m not as much of a fan of this as I am of Le jardin punk.

La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau

To me it only works as a foil.

La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau
La forêt civilisée by Roger Gaudreau

Fountain at Le Westin Montréal

Howdy!

Built in 2009.

+This is the 40th in an occasional series of videos on the fountains of Montreal+

The Colorectal Cancer Association of Canada’s An Evening of Luxury

Howdy!

On Tuesday I was invited to The Colorectal Cancer Association of Canada‘s fundraising event called An Evening of Luxury.

I’d never been to a fashion show before, but after writing about Outfits from a New Era (Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four and Part Five), Les Ballets Russes de Diaghilev and the Arlette Vermeiren Zucoli exhibit, I figured it was not only high time, but could be a learning experience as well.

Empty room at Le Windsor before the Lundström fashion show to benefit the Colorectal Cancer Association of Canada
Empty room at Le Windsor before the Lundström fashion show to benefit the Colorectal Cancer Association of Canada

I wasn’t quite certain what to expect, but I figured despite my looking like a fish out of water, whatever happened it was unlikely to hurt, and as it was for a cause, maybe it would help my karma point score.

The Backdrop for Photographs of Important People
The Backdrop for Photographs of Important People

I wasn’t important enough to have anyone ask to take my picture, but I did manage to bumble my way through the event using mine, although I almost ran out of battery power.

The Heavy Organza Dress in Fuschia from the Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Heavy Organza Dress in Fuschia from the Lundström Fall 2012 Collection

As it was a fancy fundraiser, there were lots of folk dressed to the nines. Most of the early part of the evening was dedicated to wine and finger food. There was a silent auction and a live auction and I was told that the tickets cost $350/ch.

From the Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
From the Lundström Fall 2012 Collection

According to the program there were 33 outfits, although I was unable to keep track of everything as the models sashayed by. I also was quite struck by how all the models seemed to have the same expression on their face and how they appeared angry or unhappy.

The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
The Lundström Fall 2012 Collection

Before I go to another fashion show, I’m going to have to learn what tulle, ponte di roma, lurex, dupioni and a lot of other technical terms mean. It also seems that the fashion industry and the art world aren’t exactly in sync when it comes to definitions of colors.

Glitter La Parka in Black from the Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
Glitter La Parka in Black from the Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
Glitter La Parka in Black from the Lundström Fall 2012 Collection
Glitter La Parka in Black from the Lundström Fall 2012 Collection

The show stopper.

But really what caught my eye were the shoes that were worn to the event. I’m fairly certain that more than one person thought I had a foot fetish, but I digress.

Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Shoes
Comfortable Shoes
Comfortable Shoes
Boots
Boots
Stockings
Stockings

They raised about $160,000 at the event, and if you want to know more about The Colorectal Cancer Association of Canada, click here. If you want to know more about Colorectal Cancer, click on this. If you want more information on the Lundström collections try this. If you want to make a donation to The Colorectal Cancer Association of Canada, click on this. And if you want to know more about testing for Colorectal Cancer click here.

Montréal Botanical Gardens (C)

Howdy!

Built in 1937 by Lucien F. Kéroack.

+This is the 39th in an occasional series of videos on the fountains of Montreal+

The Triennale québécoise 2011 Le travail qui nous attend / The Work Ahead of Us – 3

Howdy!

[Part One, Part Two]

If you’ve been reading the previous parts, you probably think that I’m not a big fan of The Triennale québécoise 2011. How ’bout I start moving the pendulum in the other direction and talk about some kick-ass art? Stuff that is worth the price of admission ($12 last time I checked, but did you realize that the admission to the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal has gone up 50% in the past four years? Way more than inflation, it used to be one of the bargains in the city, now I think twice about what they are showing before giving them money, but I digress). Two words: Charles Stankievech.

Back in 2007 I saw something of his called Timbral and was pretty gosh darn impressed. Something about felt and banging away on a piano always makes me go weak in the knees.

Then I heard something about him going to the Yukon and kind of thought to myself (quietly) that making a trip up there to see his work was perhaps, a little bit too far to go – but you never know. I know some people up north, and stranger things have happened. But basically didn’t give him much thought, following the standard issue cliche, out of sight, out of mind.

But lets backtrack for an instant. If, upon entering the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, after buying your ticket, you take the stairs (and yes, I will talk about Dean Baldwin’s boat, later), turn to your right (and yes, I will talk about Thérèse Mastroiacovo‘s work, later too) and then right again, Charles Stankievech’s piece is going to be something like the fifth one you see. If you take that route it’s the first one that gets its own room. (There are eight basic routes you can take through the Triennal.) You can’t miss it.

As you walk in there is a recessed shelf, with an open copy of The Purple Cloud by M. P. Shiel glassed in with a purple/pink/rose colored light, open the door, turn the corner and there you are. Smack dab in front of a wall-sized video of an exploded smoke grenade in, what I presume is, the Yukon.

When I saw it, I lucked out in my timing (the whole piece is maybe 5 minutes long, if it’s lucky) in that as I walked in, the smoke grenade had just been detonated and the purple cloud that spewed from it was still a long way off in the distance.

As I sat there, the smoke gradually was blown towards the camera, until it covered the entire screen, and then dispersed. Simple enough, right? Well, maybe, but not so fast.

First there is the score by Tim Hecker, a very low rumbling, kind of like what you would imagine something like a convoy of really big trucks would make if you put your ear to the wall of a tunnel they were in, combined with something that sounds like a methadone induced bird call along with some sort of vaguely ethereal and shimmery orchestral effect. Probably better if you were to go and listen to it yourself.

The score is so effective, that I would almost go so far as to say that it should be called a piece by Mr. Hecker with video done by Mr. Stankievech. Almost.

Second, after doing some cursory research into the book, it turns out that it’s all about the last man on earth, who just so happens to be at the North Pole, and that a purple cloud has been the reason that everyone died.

Third, according to the Marie Fraser, it’s a “performance… of Jules Olitski‘s painting ‘Instant Loveland.'”

Instant Loveland by Jules Olitski, courtesy Tate Britain. © Jules Olitski/VAGA, New York and DACS, London 2002
Instant Loveland by Jules Olitski, courtesy Tate Britain. © Jules Olitski/VAGA, New York and DACS, London 2002

Fourth and finally, there’s Kirby. A videogame character that is a purple/pink amorphous blob that inhales his enemies.

I’m not quite certain what to make of all these antecedents. But it gives me pause. I’m not as convinced that Kirby and Olitski are as significant as Shiel, but that might come from a lack of first hand knowledge of either one, and somehow I wish Mr. Stankievech and Mr. Hecker could have somehow incorporated Charles Wright into the mix.

Despite what I want, the piece is called Loveland. It’s one of the more compelling piece in the Triennal. Part of the reason it is so compelling is due to the the low rumble of the soundtrack which gives a sense of foreboding. This sense of foreboding is reinforced by the movement of the purple cloud towards the camera. And then toss in the rather bleak Yukon landscape, and you can’t help but think that something, most likely bad, is going to happen. It is that sensation that that keeps you riveted. It was the combination of effects that made me feel like I was someplace else, in some hazy dream/nightmare-in-waiting.

I’m certain that I could go on at length about some sort of doomsday/last person on earth scenario along with amorphous purple forms that swallow everything, but that would require reading the book and playing the game, both of which while I’m certain would be entertaining aren’t exactly high on my list of things to do. So I won’t. I’ll leave that for some future PhD. student, I’d much rather watch Loveland.

Basically, art makes you think, good art makes you think hard, and very good art makes you think long and hard. I’ve spent most of the past four days thinking hard about Mr. Stankievech’s Loveland

And then finally, so that the research wasn’t all for naught, here are some other songs called Loveland that I was able to find on YouTube.

+++++
Abba

Wild T & The Spirit

Rollover

R. Kelly

B-52s

Lonnie Liston Smith

Follies

Montréal Botanical Gardens (B)

Howdy!

Built in 1937 by Lucien F. Kéroack.

+This is the 38th in an occasional series of videos on the fountains of Montreal+