Samuel Fosso, Autoportrait (Angela Davis), from the African Spirits series, 2008. Gelatin silver print, 110 x 85 cm. Courtesy of jean marc patras (Paris).
Mircea Cantor, Tracking Happiness, 2009. HD video projection, colour, sound, 11 min (loop). Courtesy of Yvon Lambert (Paris) and Dvir Gallery (Tel Aviv, Brussels).
LaToya Ruby Frazier, Mom Making an Image of Me, from The Notion of Family series, 2008. Gelatin silver print, 40,6 x 50,8 cm. Courtesy of Michel Rein (Paris, Brussels) and Gavin Brown’s enterprise (New York, Rome)
Pascal Grandmaison, The Neutrality Escape, 2008. HD video projection, colour, sound, 11 min (loop). Collection of the National Gallery of Canada. Courtesy of Galerie René Blouin (Montréal).
Terrance Houle, (Grocery) #7, from the Urban Indian series, 2005. Digital print, 80 × 94 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
Frédéric Lavoie, Rue Notre-Dame, 1887, 2013. Video and sound installation, black and white, 12 min (loop). Courtesy of the artist.
Hanna Liden, My Deepest Sympathies, 2014. Chromogenic print on Sintra, 95,3 × 76,2 cm. Courtesy of Maccarone (New York, Los Angeles).
Moshe Ninio, Glass I, 2010-2011. Inkjet prints, 109,5 × 76,7 cm each. Courtesy of Dvir Gallery (Tel Aviv, Brussels) and Galerie Chantal Crousel (Paris).
J.D. ‘Okhai Ojeikere, Abebe, from the Hairstyles series, 1975. Gelatin silver print, 60 x 50 cm. Courtesy of MAGNIN-A (Paris).
Kim Waldron, Head Office (Blue Monochrome), from the Kim Waldron Ltd. series, 2017. Inkjet print, 127 x 89 cm. Courtesy of Galerie Thomas Henry Ross art contemporain (Montréal).
Liu Yue, Cognitive Studies-T-07, 2008. Digital print, 142 x 254 cm. Courtesy of ShanghART Gallery (Shanghai, Beijing, Singapore).
Luis Arturo Aguirre, Phoebe, from the Desvestidas series, 2015. Digital print, 98 × 70 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
View of the exhibition MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image. What Does the Image Stand For?, VOX, from September 7 to October 15, 2017.
VOX, Mircea Cantor, Samuel Fosso, Pascal Grandmaison, Frédéric Lavoie, Hanna Liden, Moshe Ninio, J.D. 'Okhai Ojeikere, Kim Waldron, Liu Yue, VOX and Galerie de l'UQAM, LaToya Ruby Frazier, Terrance Houle, Joshua Petherick, Galerie de l'UQAM, Adel Abdessemed, Luis Arturo Aguirre, Seung Woo Back, Yto Barrada, Dora Budor, Sara Cwynar, Nelson Henricks, Camille Henrot, Risa Horowitz, Boris Mitić and Nadia Myre
Curator
Ami Barak
Opening on September 6, 2017
> 5:00 pm at Galerie de l'UQAM
> 6:30 pm at VOX
Opening party at the 2-22 as of 7:30 pm!
MOMENTA | Biennale de l’image (formerly Le Mois de la Photo à Montréal) presents, in collaboration with VOX and Galerie de l’UQAM, the central exhibition of its 2017 edition on the theme What Does the Image Stand For?, developed by guest curator Ami Barak.
Centred on the tension between “the said” and “the unsaid” operating in the contemporary treatment of still and animated images, the central exhibition brings together the works of 23 artists.
Today, images capture the world at every instant. But what do they say at this point? Are they an objective framing of the world at a given moment? What has become of these markers of reality?
MOMENTA 2017 explores multitudinous facets of the idea of evidence for the prosecution, whether images are still or in motion, raising the question of images as avatars and focusing on the fantastical and sublimated aspects of the reality that they convey. The 38 artists in this biennale invite us not to accept their testimony uncritically.
These artists intercede between the state of things and their possible interpretations. They are “whistleblowers,” and they prefer transfiguration to replication. Determined to produce differentiation, using allegories as intermediaries, they are revitalizing figuration. Their images speak of the world in different ways, but they systematically sidestep the real.
The 23 artists presented at VOX, centre de l’image contemporaine and Galerie de l’UQAM – the event’s headquarters – explore and investigate the porous boundary between reality and imagination through complex issues such as identity, territory, history, and time.
Guest curator
Ami Barak is an independent curator and art critic who lives and works in Paris. He has launched numerous exhibitions and projects, including Taryn Simon: Rear Views, A Star-Forming Nebula, and the Office of Foreign Propaganda, Jeu de Paume (Paris, 2015); Julião Sarmento: la chose, même – the real thing, Fondation Calouste Gulbenkian (Paris, 2016); and Peter Kogler: Next, ING Art Center (Brussels, 2016). Artistic director of the Salon de Montrouge (2016 and 2017), he is also the co-curator of Life – A User’s Manual, Art Encounters, Contemporary Art Biennale (Timisoara, 2017).
Artists presented at VOX
Mircea Cantor (Romania) blends the notions of permanent inscription and erasure to evoke ephemeral imprints that we leave behind us.
Samuel Fosso (Cameroon) delivers political messages by hijacking the notion of self-portraiture.
LaToya Ruby Frazier (United States) blurs the distinction between self-portrait and social documentary. (The artist’s work is also exhibited at Galerie de l’UQAM.)
Pascal Grandmaison (Canada) casts a precise analytic view upon the technologies of yesteryear and interrogates the quest for truth pursued by filmmakers with the means at their disposal.
Terrance Houle (Canada) reveals the incongruities and stereotypes that surround the notion of alterity in post-colonial societies. (The artist’s work is also exhibited at Galerie de l’UQAM.)
By adding a soundtrack to a period photograph, Frédéric Lavoie (Canada) gives the archival document a fictional dimension.
Hanna Liden (Sweden) makes photographs that are clues to the subculture in city centres, resembling both pagan rituals and contemporary psychodramas.
Moshe Ninio (Israel) superimposes two photographs of a historically significant site, causing a spectre to emerge from the centre of the resulting image. It is the first exhibition of the artist in Canada.
J.D. ’Okhai Ojeikere (Nigeria) preserves part of his country’s ethnographic and cultural memory by creating an inventory of approximately 1,000 Nigerian hairstyles.
Joshua Petherick (Australia) moves the image away from its traditional frame and transforms it into an object-sculpture, in which the effects of digitization are constitutive. (The artist’s work is also exhibited at Galerie de l’UQAM.)
Kim Waldron (Canada) documents the funding of her new offshore enterprise based in Hong Kong, as she conducts research on the dynamics of power.
Liu Yue (China) calls into question our perception of things by revealing the banality of the everyday, in order to unveil its magical aspect. It is the first exhibition of the artist in Canada.
MOMENTA Creative
The educational program offers individuals, families, and groups an opportunity to discover the artists’ works. Follow this link to discover the full program or make a reservation. Providing access to all biennale activities, MOMENTA Passports are available at La Vitrine box office (at the 2-22 or online).
Activities offered at VOX:
MOMENTA Tours
Tours of the central exhibition at VOX and/or Galerie
de l’UQAM.
> September 16 (En): UQAM, 12:30 pm / VOX, 2:00 pm
> September 30 (Fr): UQAM, 12:30 pm / VOX, 2:00 pm
> October 5 (Fr): VOX, 5:00 pm
> October 14 (Fr): UQAM, 12:30 pm / VOX, 2:00 pm / MAC, 3:00 pm
Images of self
In this workshop held at VOX, participants are invited to create portraits with their smartphone, in a context inspired by the photographic studio and its theatrical potential.
> September 10 (Fr): 2:00 pm
> September 24 (Fr): 2:00 pm
> October 1st (Fr): 1:00 to 5:00 pm
> October 15 (Fr): 2:00 pm
Echo of an Image
Led by artist Frédéric Lavoie and inspired by his work Rue Notre-Dame, 1887, this workshop invites the audiences to create a soundtrack for an archival photograph (at VOX and CIBL).
> September 23 (Fr/En): 1:00 to 5:00 pm
> October 8 (Fr/En): 1:00 to 5:00 pm
Event
Echo of an Image. Workshop with Frédéric Lavoie
2017.09.23 + 10.08
Inspired by Lavoie’s Rue Notre-Dame, 1887, this MOMENTA Creative workshop invites the audience to imagine, from archival photographs and assisted by the artist, a soundtrack that they will record…
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