MMFA 2024: Andō Hiroshige

東海道 Tōkaidō

Dreamscapes by Andō Hiroshige

A captivating journey from Edo to Kyōto, illustrated by Japanese master printmaker Andō Hiroshige

April 27 – September 8, 2024

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA) is presenting an iconic series of prints by Andō Hiroshige (1797-1858) from its collection. For the first time in over two decades, it is pulling from storage these remarkable woodblock prints that illustrate scenes of everyday life unfolding at each relay station along the Tōkaidō, the famous Eastern Sea Road that connected Edo (now Tokyo), to the former imperial capital, Kyoto.

Dreamscapes by Andō Hiroshige  presents all 55 prints of the very first edition of "Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō," a series that has been in the MMFA's collection since 1973 and that was published in 1833-1834 by Hoeidō and Senkakudō publishing houses. The exhibition looks at the talent of Hiroshige and his publishing team in creating an idyllic world everybody wanted to inhabit. It also examines the factors that led to the astronomical commercial success of these prints, which popularized the landscape print and fueled the emergence of Japonisme in Europe.

An Invitation to travel to 19th-century Japan

An unconventional artist from the samurai class, Hiroshige was not the first to be interested in the Tōkaidō. However, the success of his first series on the subject far eclipsed that of all those that came before it. In fact, some of his illustrations were reprinted more than 15,000 times. These beautifully depicted scenes fostered the perception that the Tōkaidō was more than a mere road along the country's eastern sea coast – it was a destination in and of itself.

At the time it was created, this series sparked a desire in the masses to take the nearly 500-kilometre journey on foot from the Nihonbashi Bridge in Edo to the Sanjōhashi Bridge, in Kyoto. The 53 relay stations depicted promised travellers everything from lodging to specialty foods, sexual services and products of all sorts, including straw sandals.

Being an imaginary work, the "Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō" transcended the straightforward observational representation of places and offered instead a fantasy vision of Japan. Hiroshige's Tōkaidō treated the landscape and its atmospheric effects – wind, snow, rain – as subjects in their own right, an approach that was completely novel at the time.

The artist also cited highly popular travel books and incorporated elements that came from Europe (Western perspective, horizontal picture format, shading and synthetic blue pigment) to create exotic dreamscapes with wide appeal. Seeing a commercial opportunity in the fast-growing the consumer and travel culture, he worked closely with his publishing team to turn the print into a powerful publicity tool that would ensure widespread visibility for cosmetic products, eating establishments and teahouses, as well as promote regional culinary specialties.

Laura Vigo, Curator of Asian Art at the MMFA stated:

"The seductive charm with which Hiroshige imbued his compositions earned him the reputation as a master of Japanese landscape prints. In his captivating illustrations, he cleverly blended the real and the imaginary, to almost cinematic effect, becoming the maker of a world everybody yearned to inhabit and travel within – a world that still charms us to this day."

Mary-Dailey Desmarais, Chief Curator of the MMFA added:

"Montreal is lucky to be home to one of the country's most important collections of graphic art, built through the generosity of its community. We are excited to be shedding new light on this celebrated series of prints by Hiroshige, which helped shape the collective imagination of Japan. It is a joy to share with Montreal audiences these remarkable prints gifted to us in 1973."

Credits and curatorial team

An exhibition organized by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.
Curator: Laura Vigo, Curator of Asian Art, MMFA

This article's dedicated internet address, or also click on the title above the very first photo in this article.

Visit the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts website to check on the opening hours and to purchase your tickets online.

McCord 2024: Norman Parkinson

Audrey Hepburn, Photo Norman Parkinson

NORMAN PARKINSON: ALWAYS IN STYLE

SIXTY YEARS OF FASHION PHOTOGRAPHY

NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

Presented by Holt Renfrew Ogilvy

April 19 - September 2, 2024

McCord Stewart Museum is presenting a new exhibition that brings into focus the works of the British photographer Norman Parkinson, especially those of his photos that relate to fashion, glamour and celebrities. Always in Style is the first of two exhibitions devoted to fashion and portrait photography that will be making their North American premieres this year.

With his flamboyant personality but also artistic sensibility, Norman Parkinson gave a new impetus to fashion photography and celebrity portraiture. Between the years 1930 - 1980 he photographed not only famous models but also some of the most influential actors and actresses of that generation, including royalty and the crowned heads of Europe. He immortalized many of the 20th century’s biggest celebrities including Audrey Hepburn, Jerry Hall, David Bowie, Beatles, Rolling Stones, Jane Birkin and many others. 

Beatles, Photo Norman Parkinson

The exhibition offers to the public 79 of Norman Parkinson’s best-known photographic images. In addition, it also includes the recent discoveries from his immense and remarkable photographic portfolio. Also on display is a selection of 56 covers of major magazines – Vogue (British and American), Harper’s Bazaar, Tatler, etc. that were shot by Parkinson between the 1950s and 1970s.

Visitors will also discover several magnificent pieces from the McCord Stewart Museum’s Dress, Fashion and Textiles collection: 10 high-end dresses and ensembles made between the 1930s and the 1970s by French designers Christian Dior, Jacques Griffe, Jean Patou, Louis Féraud and Guy Laroche, Italian André Laug, and British designers Digby Morton and Hardy Amies, plus four creations by Quebec milliners Fanny Graddon and Yvette Brillon.

STEPPING OUT OF PHOTOGRAPHY STUDIOS

Norman Parkinson made a name for himself early in his career with his unconventional style. Favouring the outdoors rather than the constrained, formal environment of a photo studio, he set his models in motion in sumptuous, often unusual, settings. The 1939 photograph of model Pamela Minchin, captured mid-air in a Fortnum & Mason swimsuit on the Isle of Wight (England) for Harper’s Bazaar, illustrates this interest in spontaneity. He said of this image:

“When I pulled that picture out of the soup it confirmed to me for the rest of my life that I had to be a photographer. I was absolutely amazed by the magic of it.” 

It was this dynamic style that attracted the attention of the most celebrated fashion magazines, including Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue (British and American) and Town & Country, and earned him international recognition. One of the first fashion photographers to incorporate colour into his practice, he said:

“I dream in colour... When you dream in colour... one must photograph in colour.”

DECADES OF CREATIVITY

Much of Parkinson’s enduring success is attributed to his ability to reinvent his style over trends and decades, and to maintain his reputation despite the emergence of new generations of young photographers and models. Between the 1940s and 1950s, Parkinson began a long collaboration with British Vogue, producing images with a narrative character, as seen in Young Velvets, Young Prices (New York, Vogue, 1949), which features four models wearing hats against a backdrop of New York skyscrapers. This period also saw the appearance of images of his muse and wife Wenda Parkinson, who became one of the period’s top models. The 1960s and 1970s were marked by major lifestyle changes, but Parkinson had no trouble keeping up. Throughout the 1960s, Parkinson continued to spot new faces and began working with Queen magazine. In the 1970s, his images helped elevate new models to stardom, including the likes of Jerry Hall and Iman. During this twenty-year period, Parkinson took iconic photographs of the Rolling Stones and the Beatles, as well as fashion designers like Yves Saint Laurent, Hubert deGivenchy, Jean Muir and Zandra Rhodes. In the 1980s, Parkinson was awarded the title of Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen ElizabethII and created a series of portraits for a retrospective organized by London’s National Portrait Gallery.

The exhibition's curator Terence Pepper OBE stated:

 “I hope that the audience will appreciate the opportunity to witness the significant moments in the career of a photographer who not only played a crucial role in the development of fashion photography in the 20th century but also excelled as a portrait artist. Throughout his prolific 60-year career, spanning from 1931 until his passing in 1990, while still in action, he demonstrated a remarkable ability to capture and reflect the essence of the era in which he worked.”

Click on images to enlarge them.

All photos @ Nadia Slejskova

The exhibition includes a self-guided tour for families.

For more information about current exhibitions and special evens associated with this exhibition, visit the McCord Stewart Museum website.

This article's dedicated internet address, or click on the title above the very first photo.

Norman Parkinson with his Nikon, Photo Graham Lawrence

Conseil des arts de Montréal 2024

CONSEIL DES ARTS DE MONTRÉAL

The 38th Grand Prix

April 11, 2024

The Grand Prix du Conseil des arts de Montréal, held at the Montreal’s convention center Palais des congrès, celebrated the Quebec creative forces. It highlighted not only the winners but also the eight finalists whose creative initiatives blossomed in the Montreal metropolis in 2023.

Since 1985, the Conseil - that supports over 700 Montreal arts organizations annually - has awarded one Grand Prix each year to an artist, collective or organization, in recognition of their exceptional participation in Montreal’s artistic life.

Master of ceremonies Édith Cochrane was joined by the Conseil’s Executive Director Nathalie Maillé and Interim President Mathieu Bouchard, as well as 750 distinguished guests from the cultural, business and political communities, including the Honourable Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Canadian Heritage, and Valérie Plante, Mayor of Montréal.

All works were judged and selected in these three categories: Grand Prix ($30,000), Jury Prize ($10,000), Télé-Québec Audience Award ($10,000)

AWARDS WINNERS:

38th Grand Prix ($30,000):  Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel

Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel is highlighting 45 years of activism and artistic work, echoing the overlooked and sometimes ostracized voices of Mohawk women during the 1990 Resistance. Her short documentary film Kanatenhs – When The Pine Needles Fall also won Best Canadian Short Film during Montréal First Peoples Festival (2023). It was also nominated or awarded prizes at some thirty festivals in a dozen countries, and is a legacy to new generations and all First Peoples, a commitment to memory driven by an unshakeable drive for truth.

Jury Prize ($10,000) and Télé-Québec Audience Award ($10,000): Marguerite à bicyclette

They travelled 1,500 km by bicycle to bring to stage over 50 circus performances. The trio behind Marguerite à bicyclette brings the circus of the absurd to new audiences, reusing recycled materials to create their costumes and sets, and put on their shows without producing any greenhouse gases. Driven by values of environmental responsibility, innovation and accessibility, Marguerite à bicyclette has a playful, unifying, bold style that would influence current and future artists and inspires the next generation of audiences. 

MMFA 2024: Wanda Koop

WANDA KOOP:

WHO OWNS THE MOON

April 11 – August 4, 2024

The Montreal Museum of Fine Art is launching a new exhibition that features a Canadian artist Wanda Koop with her first solo museum presentation in Quebec. Her exhibition presents the all-seeing moon as its central motif, as if it were the artist's eye that perceives the reality of existence. It also invites the reflection on universal questions of territory, the environment, the memory and loss, while additionally offering hope through the transcendent powers of art.

Wanda Koop was born in Vancouver to parents from the Zaporizhie region of present-day Ukraine. Through her paintings she  expresses her engagement with her family's country of origin and the trauma of the present war in Eastern Europe. Nevertheless, her personal experience is but the point of departure for broader painterly meditations on the human condition. 

At this exhibition, Koop presents two new quadriptychs. One of them Sleepwalking (photo just above) is a poem to loss. It consists of four elongated rectangular paintings woven with memories of Koop's grandmother and mother, and allusions to forebears long gone. Similar like the memories that are emerging in a dream, the meaning of these paintings is not fixed. The artist, through the act of painting, griefs the loss of innocence and optimism. Yet reflecting on the ultimate tragedy of our actions, she projects a place of hope and beauty.

The second quadriptych Objects of Interest (photo just above), addresses the ultimately humbling nature of humankind's pursuits. Flanked by two paintings of the moon are two paintings of the International Space Station and China's Tiangong Space Station. This juxtaposition prompts existential questions on the unknown.  

Also included in the exhibition are paintings modelled after trees and flowers seen in the forest around Koop's retreat in Riding Mountain National Park, Manitoba. This motive is reflected in the two vertical canvases at the very top pf this article.

An additional artist's quadriptych consists of four monumental paintings that depict the Crimean Coast as seen from a distant shore across the Black Sea at different times of day, capturing the silver light of early morning as well as the deep blue of midnight with phosphorescent hues glowing in the moonlit water. Vertical bands of colours ranging from neon yellow to electric red remind us of the paintings' materiality as solid objects in this world and simultaneously opening a doorway to the imagination. (See photo of two painting of the Crimean Coast quadriptych just above this paragraph and the images of the additional two quadriptych paintings captured n the three photos below this paragraph.)

Mary-Dailey Desmarais, Chief Curator of the MMFA and curator of the exhibition, stated:

"We are honoured to welcome this eminent figure of Canadian contemporary art for her first solo presentation in a Quebec museum. Over the course of her more than fifty-year career, Koop has developed a singular visual language distinguished by its sheer mastery of colour and profound engagement with the human condition. Both poignant and deeply pertinent, Koop's work invites reflection on shared concerns of our historical moment."

On photos below Koop is being presented at a press conference and is later interviewed by a journalist.

Click on images to enlarge them.

All photos @ Nadia Slejskova

This article's dedicated internet address, or also click on the title above the very first photo in this article.

Visit the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts website to check on the opening hours and to purchase your tickets online.

McCord 2024: MC Snow

Presence of the Past by MC Snow

Visual poetry rooted in tradition and the transmission of knowledge

March 1 - August 18, 2024

McCord Stewart Museum new exhibition Presence of the Past by MC Snow is a part of the Contemporary Native Art Biennial (BACA). MCShows' Kanien’kehá:ka installation immerses the viewer in a space filled with the objects from the Museum’s Indigenous Cultures collection including some contemporary works.

MC Snow explored the Museum’s reserves and selected forty objects from which he drew inspiration to create two original sculptures at the center of the exhibition.

Through the emotions and messages conveyed by the Kanien’kehá:ka cultural objects conserved by the Museum, the artist puts forward a contemporary interpretation of the teachings, traditions and know-how transmitted by the objects in the collection. With Presence of the Past, MC Snow wishes to emphasize the importance of researching and preserving Indigenous cultural property, essential to transmitting the knowledge and safeguarding the cultural traditions of Indigenous peoples.

Some of the cultural objects that are presented at the exhibition date back to the 14th century. By juxtaposing those objects – mostly of Kanien’kehá:ka origin – with the contemporary representations of his reflections on the past, MC Snow explores his personal visceral emotions towards them and focuses attention to the ways in which they convey meaning.

Presence of the Past focuses on poetic metaphors relating to truth, care, protection, transmission and memory. Those metaphors express the teachings that emanate from the creation story, forming a visual poetry rooted in oral tradition.

 MC Snow explained:

  “For me, pots have always been objects that carry something. We place things in pots to contain and protect them. The same applies to baby carriers. Just as we carry ideas, we carry our children. These are objects and knowledge that we preserve for the future, and therefore for generations to come. The Girl with the Basket (one of two works by MC Snow in the exhibition) is also a character who communicates ideas through her basket. She communicates them to the children she carries in her baby carrier.” 

 Research and knowledge preservation

The artist’s concern with emphasizing the importance of researching and preserving Indigenous cultural property is reflected in the objects selected by MC Snow and Jonathan Lainey, Curator, Indigenous Cultures at the McCord Stewart Museum. The public will be able to view some forty rarely exhibited cultural items from the Indigenous Cultures collection: pottery, baby carriers, dolls and arrows. For MC Snow, the arrows represent self-preservation and the protection of Indigenous languages and cultures. The dolls embody the stories that Kanien’kehá:ka elders tell their children to explain the world around them. Baby carriers and decorated pots are used to pass on these values and teachings to future generations. The pot fragments are preserved so that their past remains accessible. The artist insists on the importance of treating objects with dignity, because for Indigenous nations, cultural property is more than just an object; it holds the spirits of their ancestors.

MC Snow stated:

 “Seven years ago, I embarked on an ambitious project that teamed up the City of Montreal and the Kanien’kehá:ka territory of Kahnawake to address and valorize the theme of truth and reconciliation. I believe that every time we, as a First Nation community, engage in any kind of meaningful way with Tiohtià:ke, it furthers our way on this path of reconciliation and respect. We are, after all, very close neighbors. Through the Peel Street Project, the BACA, and now the McCord Stewart Museum, I take responsibility to accept and uphold my end of the bargain: to engage in a truthful and meaningful dialogue to promote this idea of peace and mutual respect.

If one memory or emotion is taken away from this Presence of the Past, let it be that the spirit it was done in was one of good-minded collaboration, much conversation and opinion sharing, and enthusiastic effort from both sides. This was my desire in this work, to take part in building a new vessel that could carry our hopes and stories into the future. My time with the McCord Stewart Museum has been a turning point in my own personal journey of truth and reconciliation. I hope to pass on and send people home with something good to share.”

MC Show presenting his exhibition

 MC Snow

MC Snow is a multidisciplinary Kanien’kehà:ka artist living in Kahnawá:ke. MC is a graduate of the University of Ottawa fine arts department (BFA). He has been working and exhibiting in Canada and the United States since the 1990s. His mostly sculptural work combines traditional materials and techniques. While reflecting contemporary concerns, his work contributes to preserving traditional artistic value and defending Kanien’kehà:ka cultural identity. 

Two photos below capture MC Show working on one of his sculptures at the exhibition at his studio.

Click on Images to enlarge them

All photos @ Nadia Slejskova

For more information about current exhibitions and special evens associated with this exhibition, visit the McCord Stewart Museum website.

For this article's dedicated internet address, click on the title above the very first photo.

Horizon of Khufu 2024

The Horizon of Khufu:

A Journey in Ancient Egypt

North American premiere

in the Old Port of Montreal

More than 26,000 tickets sold already

February 16 - May 31, 2024 or longer if extended

The Horizon of Khufu is an immersive virtual reality expedition of immense scope that transports visitors into the heart of one of the Seven Wonders of the World: the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.

Considered to be a true Wonder of the World, this pyramid, the only remaining one of seven, has stood the test of time. Remaining a witness to Egypt’s 4,500-year-old architectural expertise and powers, the Great Pyramid of Khufu has dominated the Giza Plateau and the city of Cairo for millennia. Erected between 2,590 and 2,565 BC, the 146-meter-high stone edifice was originally the largest ever built by man. Conceived to house King Khufu in his final resting place, the pyramid continues to this day to attract and fascinate visitors from all over the world.

This unique 3D virtual Journey in Ancient Egypt is a 45-minute experience, and the result of three years of research and development by Emissive. Their VR headset will transport the audience over 8,000 km from Montreal for a journey back to the third millennium B.C. when the Great Pyramid of Khufu has dominated the Giza Plateau. Starting at the base of the tallest pyramid in Egypt, the audience is than brought inside the pyramid, at the top of the pyramid, and then on an ancient boat and a journey along the Nile river.

This is a truly unique experience not to be missed. The audience is nit only introduced to the Millenia old architectural marvel, but also to some religions believes and customs of the ancient Egypt.

Just remember, in case you might start feeling dizzy at some point, that at all times you are actually standing on and walking along a solid floor.

Your guide on this virtual, historical, and mystical journey will be Mona, a 3D virtual personality who will guide you along.

About Emissive | Excurio

Emissive was founded in 2005 by Emmanuel Guerriero and Fabien Barati, both immersive technologies passionate professionals. Today, Emissive is a group of 25 talented people all working from their Parisian offices: designers, 3D artists, developers, animators, project managers who all embody creativity and technological innovation. Here at Emissive, we all believe that Virtual Reality is an opportunity to tell a better story, a story that you live, not that you consume.

PHI Studio, the organizer of the Montreal event

PHI Studio has developed a reputation as an incubator for talent at the vanguard and as a catalyst for the conception and implementation of immersive multidisciplinary projects. We are continually exploring the ways in which technology can lead to new forms of artistic expression and storytelling. PHI Studio is committed to collaborating with artists, producers, and partners to foster the creation and development of innovative artworks at the vanguard, shaping the future of the immersive experience.

Click on images to enlarge them.

6 first photos courtesy of Emissive and PHI Studio.

3 bottom photos @ Nadia Slejskova

For this article's dedicated internet address, click on the title above the very first photo.

Visit The Horizon of Khufu website to check on the opening hours and to purchase your tickets online.

MMFA 2024: Georgia O'Keeffe and Henry Moore

Georgia O’Keeffe and Henry Moore:

Giants of Modern Art

February 10 – June 2, 2024

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA) is presenting the Canadian exclusive Georgia O’Keeffe and Henry Moore: Giants of Modern Art. This large-scale exhibition sets for the first time the work of American painter Georgia O’Keeffe (1887‑1986) in dialogue with the British sculptor Henry Moore (1898-1986).

The exhibition is organized by the San Diego Museum of Art. It examines in parallel the lives and the artistic paths of these two 20th-century icons. Through their over 120 works, as well as the additional recreation of each artist’s studio, visitors can discover the evolution of O’Keeffe’s and Moore’s artistic practices, and how the artists emphasized the fundamental relationship between the humanity and the natural world.

Though they lived on separate continents, O’Keeffe and Moore shared a coherent vision and approach to Modernism. Their commonality lies in their intense sensitivity to the natural world and their ongoing exploration of their rural and open environments surroundings. Natural forms were both for O’Keeffe and Moore central to their individual artistic creation.

Both O’Keeffe and Moore, on their daily excursions and travels, both artists collected stones, animal skulls and bones, gnarled roots, pieces of wood, and coiled seashells with which they filled their studios. Their vast collections of such found objects reveal striking similarities. The first ever, the meticulous recreation of their respective studios enables the public to see how these found objects shaped their creation and inspired some of their most important works.

Georgia O’Keeffe's studio

Henry Moore's Studio

A remarkable collection of works

O’Keeffe and Moore have been the subjects of innumerable exhibitions but never before has their work been brought together. The artworks in the exhibition come mainly from the Henry Moore Foundation, in Hertfordshire, England, and the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, in New Mexico, as well as from approximately 20 museums and private collections.

The works on display comprise paintings, works on paper and sculptures in diverse media, ranging from plasters and bronzes to lead, rare woods like elm and lignum vitae, marble, as well as Hopton Wood stone, Cumberland alabaster and even a sculpture carved from stalactite. 

Masterpieces include in MMFA exhibition:

Moore’s stringed Bird Basket (1939), Reclining Figure (1959-1964), Working Model for Three Piece No. 3: Vertebrae (1968) and Working Model for Oval with Points (1968-1969),

and O’Keeffe’s Jack-in-the-Pulpit No. 3 (1930), Ram’s Head, Blue Morning Glory (1938) and Pedernal – From the Ranch #1 (1956). 

In addition, the present Montreal exhibition includes works from its own collection, including a transformation drawing and four sculptures by Moore, as well as a portrait of O’Keeffe photographed by Yousuf Karsh.

The exhibition also integrates a selection of video interviews conducted with the two artists at certain points in their careers.

Mary-Dailey Desmarais, MMFA Chief Curator, states:

“We are thrilled to collaborate with the San Diego Museum of Art to present the work of pioneering modern artists Georgia O’Keeffe and Henry Moore in Montreal. Illuminating the singular and powerful, if unspoken, dialogue between O’Keeffe and Moore, this exhibition sheds new light on their shared appreciation for the interconnection between humans and the natural world, an essential subject for our time.”

Anita Feldman, Deputy Director for Curatorial Affairs, San Diego Museum of Art, and Curator of the exhibition comments:

“The two artists met only once that we know of, on the occasion of Moore’s solo exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, in 1946. O’Keeffe had also had a solo exhibition there the same year. We have to wonder what this formidable institution was saying to devote their program to these two artists just as the world was reeling from the trauma of war. Could it be that their art offered something life affirming, positive and healing through its humanistic connection with nature?”

Iris Amizlev, Curator – Community Engagement and Projects at the MMFA and curator of the Montreal presentation, elaborates:

“Given the many similarities in O’Keeffe’s and Moore’s artistic interests, habits, formal explorations and iconographic vocabularies, it’s difficult to fathom that no extensive exchange of ideas ever occurred between them. Linked by an intangible connection that transcended time and space, they followed parallel trajectories of prolific output inspired by natural forms.”

After Montreal, the exhibition will be presented at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts (October 13, 2024 – January 20, 2025).

Click on images to enlarge them.

All photos @ Nadia Slejskova

This article's dedicated internet address, or click on the title above the very first photo.

Visit the the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts website to check on the opening hours and to purchase your ticket online.

The grandson of the artist Henry Moore, whose name is also Henry Moore and who works at the Henry Moore's Foundation in England, was also present at the Press Conference. He is captured in the two photos below.