Festival Art Souterrain 2023 – 15e édition

Q: How to reach us ?

You can reach us at 438-699-6889 , a member of the Art Souterrain team will answer your questions.

Festival

Curators

Artists

Program

Exhibition Places

FAQ

An atypical contemporary art festival that redesigns montreal’s underground pathway

3 weeks
of festival

About thirty
artists
exhibited

5 exhibition
places

100% free

5 event-based
experiences

Dozens
of mediation
activities

For this anniversary edition, Art Souterrain has called upon Eddy Firmin (Quebec), Ayrson Heráclito (Brazil) and Jean-François Prost (Quebec) to curate some 30 artistic projects on the theme of the party.

“Parties are entanglements of actions, gestures, and details that influence our experience of space. Uprooted from everyday life, our minds are, for the moment, projected to a fantastic elsewhere. Flooded with light, sound, movement, shifting atmospheres, and gathered bodies, these are sites to be reinvented, between utopia and reality. The party often arises from the appropriation of various environments—neglected, underutilized, indefinite, banal, domestic, or strictly functional—that lend themselves to an emancipatory drift without a preconceived purpose. From all that night and the city offer to our capacity for exploration, the party rises up and asserts itself, occasioning fortuitous encounters. Transgressing established limits and celebrating incongruity engenders another world, heterogeneous and undisciplined, where it is still possible for us to come together with all our differences.”

La fête, Jean-François Prost, éditions VU, 2021

Curators

Eddy
Firmin

Vision

Biography

Eddy Firmin

VISION

Emblematic of the party ecosystem, the sound system evokes both a Caribbean legacy to the world and a voice that continues to resist the system. This space offers a festive interstice teeming with reinventions in which everything is danced, negotiated or stumbled upon.

In the manner of a visual jukebox, this curatorial work questions the cohabitation of five visual voices, their dissonance and their voluptuousness.

The collective work, 'Pa ka tann ?! reminds us that the Jamaican sound system, inherited from the spirit of resistance of the slaves, was built on the refusal of the master systems and the uniformity of their music. Questioning the erasure of otherness, the installation Chorale by Sébastian Maltais invites us to honour our differences. Floating in space, 18 portraits of choirboys seem to begin a song where stories are celebrated without being crossed out.

The space for reinvention is also the invitation to photographer Ajamu X. By celebrating the sensuality of a non-heteronormative masculinity, the artist confronts our prejudices, as much about the black man as about the macho image attached to the sound system. Finally, the graphic rhythm that runs through Robine Deyo's work reinvents space, while Gary Stewart gives voice to a reinterpreted history.

Eddy Firmin

BIOGRAPHY

Originally from the French Caribbean, Eddy Firmin is an artist-researcher and lecturer living and working in Montreal, Quebec. He holds a PhD in Art Studies and Practices from the Université du Québec à Montréal, taught at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design in 2021-2022 and is currently an invited artist at Concordia University. Since 2017, he coordinates the publication of the decolonial journal "Minorit'Art".

In the fall of 2021, he initiated and curated the first transnational black Biennial, Af-flux, in Montreal and Quebec City. His research interests focus on the decolonization of the imaginary and the articulation of transcultural issues in art.

Ayrson
Heràclito

Vision

Biography

Ayrson Heràclito

VISION

AS FESTAS : (dé)colonialité, célébration, insurrections.

La proposition curatoriale d'Ayrson Heráclito invite à une lecture profonde du concept des Fêtes (AS FESTAS) au-delà de la signification d'un événement heureux, mais comme une célébration rituelle et d'un mécanisme de déconstruction des liens coloniaux et des confrontations socio-politiques.

À cette fin, AS FESTAS regroupe une sélection d'artistes multi et transculturel·les de différents pays et continents et s’intéresse à la force perturbatrice du phénomène culturel de fête et de célébrations.

Les artistes africains Tiécoura N'Daou et Ican Ramageli, du Mali et du Sénégal ont été invités à participer. Ican Ramageli présente une poétique de nature rituelle, comme un exercice créatif de production artistique, au-delà des canons de l'art occidental. Les deux œuvres de ces artistes servent de référence à d'autres représentations afro-diasporiques tels que le projet Nego Fugido de Vinicius Xavier qui capture un opéra populaire de l’émancipation afro-brésilienne; la Chegança dos Marujos capturée par Shirley Stolze - symbole de lutte anticoloniale et de l'insurrection du peuple bahianais pour l'indépendance ; les oeuvres de Isabel Gouvêa et de Marco Aurélio Damaceno qui, par la photographie et la performance recréent des images des mythes et des rituels célébrés lors de la grande fête de la divinité Iemanjá, le 2 février, dans la ville de Salvador.

Le carnaval au Brésil est l'une des plus grandes fêtes populaires de la planète, avec pour centres névralgiques Salvador et Rio de Janeiro. L'œuvre de J. Cunha, avec la conception du trio elétrico Carnaval Ouro Negro, célèbre le système sonore le plus important du carnaval de Bahia. La série de Mulambö rend hommage au grand spectacle populaire qu'est le défilé des écoles de samba, dans le carnaval de Rio de Janeiro.

Les œuvres d'Antonio Pichillá Quiacaín et de Ieda Oliveira célèbrent le caractère performatif des expressions populaires complexes de l'Amérique, fruit de confrontations et de négociations des inégalités, à travers divers contextes politiques et esthétiques. La fête en tant que mécanisme de critique de la colonialité se révèle puissante dans l'œuvre de ces artistes.

Ayrson Heràclito

BIOGRAPHY

Ayrson Heráclito lives and works between Cachoeira and Salvador in Bahia, Brazil. Ayrson Heráclito is a visual artist, curator, doctor in communication and semiotics from the Pontifical University of São Paulo, and a professor at the University of Reconcavo da Bahia in Cachoeira. He is also Ogã Sojatin ("Master" in the Jeje nation) of a Jeje Mahi Humpame (temple that worships the Voduns of the Jeje Mahi Candomblé lineage) in the city of Salvador.

His research focuses on elements of Afro-Brazilian culture and its links between Africa and the diaspora of the Americas. His works take the form of installations, performances, photographs and videos. The artist participated in the Luanda Triennial in Angola in 2010, the Bamako Photography Biennale in Mali in 2015 and the 57th Venice Biennale in Italy in 2017. He was one of the chief curators of the 3rd Bahia Biennial and guest curator of the Afro-Atlantic Histories project at MASP, São Paulo, in 2018.

Jean-François
Prost

Vision

Biography

Jean-François Prost

VISION

Lieux, actions et coarchitectures de la fête

La fête en tant que lieu social et politique est un espace-temps ouvert aux gestes imprévisibles et aux rencontres hasardeuses favorisant le rapprochement des corps à une époque de distanciation, de contrôle accru et d'individualisation. En ce sens, la fête et par extension la musique, la danse, le rassemblement et l’excès peuvent créer de nouvelles relations et transformer des espaces en endroits créatifs et prospectifs.

Le lieu inspire et génère la fête. De diverses manières, la conception et le caractère des environnements définis par l'éclairage, les matériaux, les formes et la dimension sonore sont propices à la danse et à la fête. Paradise Garage et DJ Levan ont offert un contexte dépouillé et sûr pour la libre expression du corps et de l'esprit, permettant la rencontre des genres et la diversité des cultures musicales. Dans les images des discothèques périurbaines de François Prost, un simple néon, une enseigne fantaisiste façonnent l’atmosphère et transforment une construction au départ banale en suggérant une autre activité. Marques de temps et d’espaces les photographies de clubs techno d’André Giesemann & Daniel Schulz, à l’effigie de la musique, dévoilent des bâtiments bruts, à l’écart des zones habitées propices aux dérives festives. Avec le nouveau projet Décor Trésor, Catherine Lescarbeau revisite et décontextualise les usages habituels et la perception d'objets familiers avec humour et incongruité. Camille Jodoin-Eng renouvelle avec singularité et hybridité le sens et l'expérience de la légendaire et emblématique boule disco.

À l’inverse du lieu, c’est l’action ou une contre-conduite qui engendre la fête contrairement à la fonctionnalité ou la banalité d'un espace. En détournant de manière inaccoutumée et insolite des environnements comme la ville souterraine, nous faisons vivre autrement un milieu de vie quotidien. Chez Martin Rodriguez ce sont les mariachis qui transportent avec eux la fête où qu’ils soient et en produisant un effet de surprise auquel personne ne reste indifférent. Avec la participation du personnel souvent invisible du réseau souterrain, Magali Babin compose une œuvre sonore inédite qui transforme l’expérience habituelle d’un corridor. En arrière-scène d’un carnaval brésilien, Cao Guimarães et Rivane Neuenschwander nous font découvrir dans une vidéo l’activité inconnue et fascinante des fourmis avec des confettis. Ce micro-moment nous sensibilise aux interactions complexes entre la nature et les humains, l’artificiel et l’organique ainsi qu’au hasard et au contrôle.

Au sein du livre La fête, carnavals, rassemblements populaires ou soirées underground, sont une manière d’être ensemble en dépit de nos différences, de transcender des frontières établies ou de marquer un arrêt dans notre quotidienneté. Au sens d'une coarchitecture, la fête captive Prost comme un environnement dans lequel la participation des autres est essentielle pour façonner toujours différemment un lieu et des situations.

Jean-François Prost

BIOGRAPHY

Jean-François Prost is an artist and curator with an academic background in architecture. He has a keen interest in new urban research territories and he approaches art as an act of resistance, a state of mind, a medium for enunciating and exchanging ideas. His artistic actions, workshops and publications address issues of urban mixing, rights to the city and civic participation through a (co)definition of living environments. He is the founder of Adaptive Actions (AA), co-founder of l’atelier SYN- and is currently pursuing his doctoral studies on transformable architectures at UQAM. Since 1998, his individual and collaborative work has been presented at the Madrid Abierto and Liverpool Biennials, the Canadian Centre for Architecture, Dare-Dare and Musagetes. The books published by AA, "Heteropolis" and "Stopping - Arrêts", have been the subject of a series of actions and exhibitions including those at the BNLMTL Biennial, MUAC (MX), Tokyo Wonder Site and Bina Ellen Gallery. Two of his projects, "Infralois" and "Chantier", are currently underway at the Skol Art Centre.

Comité
Art Souterrain

Vision

Art Souterrain

VISION

Le revers de la fête

Pour cette édition anniversaire du festival, un comité interne à Art Souterrain a retenu les propositions de huit artistes qui mettent en évidence une réalité plus sombre associée à la fête. Dans un contexte d’incertitude écologique et économique, la fête se présente comme un espace hors du temps et des codes établis. Elle représente une échappatoire à la réalité du quotidien. La fête rassemble autour du désir commun de partager un moment hors de l’ordinaire. Un nouvel équilibre festif s’installe, pouvant à tout moment basculer vers l’ennui, l’excès, l’interdit.

Les artistes sélectionné.e.s expriment avec délicatesse ce renversement où l’atmosphère festive laisse place à la solitude, la menace des regards sur les corps, la perte de contrôle sur les mots, les gestes et les sens.

Au-delà de cette vision désenchantée, les artistes nous rappellent que la fête est aussi le lieu d’une communion bienveillante, le refuge trouvé dans la famille choisie, aussi espace de résistance et de pleine expression de son identité.

Artists

Ajamu X

André Giesemann and Daniel Schulz

Annie Baillargeon

Antonio Pichillá Quiacaín

Camille Jodoin-Eng

Caó Cruz Alves

Cao Guimarães and Rivane Neuenschwander

Catherine Lescarbeau

Collectif 5

David Champagne

François Prost

Gary Stewart

Géraldine Entiope and Eddy Firmin

Ican Ramageli

Ieda Oliveira

Isabel Gouvêa

J. Cunha

Jacqueline van de Geer

Magali Babin

Marco Aurélio Damaceno

Marie-Christine Le Vey and Pastiche love

Martín Rodríguez

Mehryl Levisse

Mulambö

Paradise Garage

Princess Victoria Institunia

Robbin Deyo

Sébastian Maltais

Shirley Stolze

Steven Smith Simard

Tiécoura N’Daou

Vinicius Xavier

Mediation Activities

Events

Exhibition locations

The Festival Art Souterrain takes place this year in the corridors of five buildings in downtown Montreal. The exhibition presents the works of some thirty artists, distributed among the different exhibition sites. The buildings are accessible individually, but are also connected by the underground passage, with the exception of the exhibition place in Place Ville-Marie.

To facilitate your visit, we suggest three strategic points of entry. Once inside, simply follow the signs!
Find your way around using the map of the Festival’s entry points and our maps below!

Place Ville Marie

Montreal World Trade Centre

Jacques Parizeau Building

Palais des Congrès de Montréal

Place de la cité internationale

1000 de la Gauchetière

Place Ville Marie (PVM)

(entry point A)

Two exterior entrances are possible:
- Entrance to the PVM Gallery on Cathcart Street at the intersection of McGill College Avenue, on either side of the monumental staircase, under the Oval. Once inside the PVM building, proceed to the commercial gallery level.
- Entrance to the PVM Gallery on Mansfield Street near Cathcart Street, on the MAC level.

Metro access :
McGill: get off and cross the food court of the Montreal Eaton Center, towards Place Ville Marie. Once at the shopping mall level, the exhibition is located in the right corridor (at the corner of the Ecco store) and on the 1st level.

Opening hours: daily, 10am - 6pm

The Art Souterrain Quartier Général (Headquarters)
The Quartier Général of the Festival is located at PVM, on the commercial gallery level, in the corridor of the Musée d'Art Contemporain de Montréal (MAC).
It is a point of information and orientation for visitors, and also welcomes you during our events and activities (to be followed in our programmation).
The Quartier Général is open every day, from 12pm to 5pm. The Art Souterrain team welcomes you on site to guide you through the underground. You can also reach the HQ by phone at this number: 438-699-6889.

Montreal World Trade Centre - Centre de commerce mondial de Montréal

(entry point C)

747 Rue du Square-Victoria, Montreal, QC H2Y 3Y9
Opening hours: daily, 7am -11pm
Subway station: Square Victoria - OACI

Plan Centre de commerce mondial de Montréal

Jacques Parizeau Building

(entry point C - via Centre de commerce mondial de Montréal)

Opening hours: daily, 7am - 6pm
Subway station: Square Victoria - OACI

Plan Édifice Jacques-Parizeau et Palais des congrès

Palais des Congrès de Montréal*

(entry point C - via Centre de commerce mondial de Montréal)

Opening hours: daily, 5.30am -11pm
Subway station: Square Victoria - OACI
*Please note: this year, this building is only hosting Mehryl Levisse's work, on a very small part of its territory, at the intersection between the World Trade Center and the Jacques Parizeau Building. Artwork number 5.

Place de la cité internationale

(entry point B)

950 Rue du Square-Victoria, Montreal, QC H3C 6J7
Opening hours: daily, 5am - 12am
Subway station: Square Victoria - OACI

1000 de la Gauchetière

Work by Collectif 5 exhibited until August

Frequently Asked Questions
Art Souterrain Festival

Where is the exhibition located?

The exhibition takes place in the corridors of five buildings in downtown Montreal. You can find all the details about the location of the works in the exhibition locations tab.

How to reach us ?

You can reach us at 438-699-6889, a member of the Art Souterrain team will answer your questions.

Where will the Festival launch take place?

The launch of the Festival will take place on Saturday, March 18, 2023, from 6 to 9 pm. Meet us on the first floor of the Place Ville-Marie shopping mall for an evening of performances and DJ sets! Mediators will be present to welcome and guide you throughout the evening. More details in the programming tab.

How to get to the underground?

You can get to the various exhibition sites by metro, bus or car.
The closest metro stations are Square Victoria (for access to the World Trade Center, Place de la Cité Internationale, the Jacques Parizeau Building and the Palais des congrès de Montréal) and McGill (for access to Place Ville-Marie).
From the outside, you can take one of the entry points to the festival : on Cathcart Street / McGill College avenue or 1215 Mansfield Street to access Place Ville-Marie. On 747 du Square-Victoria to access the Montreal World Trade Centre, or on 950 du Square-Victoria to access Place de la Cité internationale. Then just follow the signs!

Are you lost? Call us at 438-699-6889 and an Information Officer will help you find your way!

Where can I park near the Festival?

Our three Festival entry points have underground parking, which will allow you to access the exhibition directly:
Parking lot Place de la cité Internationale – Indigo
Parking lot Centre de commerce mondial de Montréal – Indigo
Parking lot Place Ville-Marie – Indigo

Is there a reception point for the public?

Everyday we welcome you from 12pm to 5pm in our Headquarters to inform you and guide you. It is located in the Place Ville-Marie shopping mall, across from the Cathcart and a few steps from the MAC Montreal. The nearest metro station is McGill.
Information agents will also be present in each exhibition space to help you. Just look for the black and pink shirts!

If you have any questions, you can also reach us at 438-699-6889

Who can help me on site?

Our Information agents are there to give you information and to orient you in the underground path. A guide will be present in each building every Saturday and Sunday, from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m. Don’t hesitate to ask them all your questions!

If you have any questions, you can also reach us at 438-699-6889

What are the opening hours of the exhibition?

The exhibition spaces are open every day of the week, as well as on weekends. You can find the details of the opening hours in the exhibition spaces section.

How to attend events and activities?

You will find the complete program of our events and mediation activities in the programming tab. To register, simply follow the links associated with each activity. Our events are also available on our Facebook page and on eventbrite.

Where do the activities and events take place?

Guided tours and other mediation activities take place in the underground network, near the exhibition spaces. Some activities are held in our Headquarters, Place Ville-Marie. Events will take place in Place Ville-Marie or in our partner venues.
We invite you to consult each event individually to find out the exact meeting point. The complete program is available here.

If you have any questions, you can also reach us at 438-699-6889

Is this an exhibition tour?

The exhibition spans five buildings in downtown Montreal. To make the most of your experience, we recommend two exhibition routes:

The tour from OACI > to World Trade Center of Montreal
Enter at 950 Rue du Square-Victoria, discover the corridor on the second floor of the OACI, then enter the underground passages and let yourself be guided by the artworks of art and the signage to the World Trade Center of Montreal!

The tour of Place Ville Marie
Arrive by McGill metro (get off and walk through the food court of the Montreal Eaton Centre, towards Place Ville Marie) or by one of our two PVM Gallery entry points (see on this map):
– Galerie PVM entrance on Cathcart Street at the intersection of McGill College Avenue, on either side of the monumental staircase, under the Anneau.
– PVM Gallery entrance on Mansfield Street near Cathcart Street: walk past the MAC and Le Cathcart restaurant to the end of the hallway.
Once in the commercial gallery, the exhibition is in the corridor of the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (MAC) and on the first floor (1st level).

Is there a toilet on site?

Restrooms are available at the World Trade Center, on the food court level, and at the Cathcart, Place Ville-Marie.

Can I bring my children?

The Festival is a great opportunity for a weekend activity for the whole family! The exhibition is accessible to younger children, accompanied by an adult. Mediation workshops and guided tours for young audiences are also organized throughout the festival. More details on the activities can be found in the programming tab.

Is it free?

Our Festival is 100% free!
The exhibition is free and freely accessible at all times. The events and activities are also free, but require prior registration on eventbrite. All the details can be found in the programming tab.

How to book a guided tour?

Guided tours with mediators are organized throughout the festival. The tours are free, with registration, and announced in our programming tab.
You are a teacher and wish to book a guided tour of the festival for a group of students? We offer thematic and custom-made tours. Please send an email to the following address: mediation@artsouterrain.com

Is the Festival accessible to people with reduced mobility?

All of our exhibition spaces are accessible to people with reduced mobility, having the assistance of an attendant. There are elevators in all buildings, as well as automatic doors. However, some doors have to be opened manually.
For more information about access, please contact one of our Information agents along the exhibition route or the security guards in the buildings.

Can we take pictures?

Yes, photos are allowed in the exhibition spaces and during events. Feel free to share them on your social media and mention Art Souterrain!

Where to eat on site?

You’ll find several places to eat along the Festival pathway. Place Ville-Marie, the Cathcart welcomes you from morning to night for a varied offer of food, just in front of our Headquarters. The Osco! restaurant at the InterContinental, located in the heart of the Montreal World Trade Centre, offers cuisine inspired by the markets of southern France, ideal after long hours of exploring the exhibition! The Montreal World Trade Centre also has a food court where you can eat on site. Lunches are also allowed.

Where to stay near the Festival?

Visiting Montreal to discover the Festival? The InterContinental Montreal hotel is ideally located on the exhibition pathway. You can access it directly from the World Trade Center, and see some of the Festival’s works in the process!

What is the Festival Art Souterrain?

The Festival Art Souterrain is a unique contemporary art event in North America. For three weeks, the Festival takes over the underground network of downtown Montreal to exhibit the works of a selection of established, local and international contemporary artists. The festival also offers a rich program of events and mediation activities, which respond to Art Souterrain’s primary mission of democratizing contemporary art.

What does our visual identity mean?

Lost, forgotten or abandoned, the selected objects are remnants of past parties.
Carnivals, student parties, family celebrations, pandemic gatherings or clubbing and nightlife, these remnants of past parties sometimes carry a double meaning that refers us to our own experiences of the party. Playing with stereotypes, these objects also refer to a darker and more disturbing reality. For if the party is associated with sharing, glitter and the celebration of traditions, it is also synonymous with excess, overflow and loss of control. Each object must be interpreted and reflected upon individually, but also as a whole.

Our visual identity was realized by the agency Paprika, which we thank for this beautiful proposal!

Didn't find an answer to your question? Contact us by phone at 438-699-6889 or via private message on Facebook or Instagram!