Biography

Princess Victoria Institunia is a virtual twin of artist Antoine Lortie, who comes from a plane of existence alien to humanity. She uses her host’s artistic skills to further her quest to become an artistic matrix, a creative entity transcending the codes of art. She is increasingly present in Antoine’s work, which is held in international private collections and in the Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec. His artistic approach is based on subversion as a method to explore the limits and possibilities of art, with a strong philosophical dimension. She is both the work and the creator, the artist and the muse, the pencil and the trace.

Pharmakon (2023)

Pharmakon is a work of aesthetic appropriation that uses a cosmetic display case to question the codes of beauty and the limits of consumption. It uses laser cutting and 3D printing techniques to create a reinterpretation of the aesthetics of beauty. She also aims to detoxify the ‘male gaze’ by transforming its structures. The objects presented, such as a bottle of perfume from the Musée des Beaux-Arts du Québec and a cream from the Réseau Art Actuel, serve to question the methods of public cultural production and their impact on Quebec’s artistic culture. The name ‘pharmakon’ refers to a ritual in ancient Greece where a young virgin was sacrificed to purify the water consumed by the inhabitants.