Montréal, March 23, 2010This summer’s program at the MAC will revolve around art, architecture and design with the exhibition Yesterday’s Tomorrows, film with the show Runa Islam, photography with the exhibition David K. Ross and video with the presentation of Music Video V.

Exhibitions

Yesterday’s Tomorrows

May 21 to September 6, 2010

Many contemporary artists have returned in recent years to the forms, ideas and aspirations of Modernist architecture and design. The exhibition Yesterday’s Tomorrows brings together works by ten Canadian and international artists who tackle Modernism by engaging in a dialogue with a designer or work from this pivotal period of the twentieth century. It features various “conversations” through the media of video, painting, sculpture, installation and photography. Toronto artist Paulette Phillips examines architect/designer Eileen Gray’s villa E-1027; Austrian artist Dorit Margreiter, one of John Lautner’s houses; Spanish-born American Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle, Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House; British artist Simon Starling, the lamps of Danish designer Poul Henningsen; Scottish artist Toby Paterson, Basil Spence’s British Pavilion for Expo 67; Vancouver artist Arni Haraldsson, Ernö Goldfinger’s buildings; Slovenian-born Tobias Putrih, Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic spheres; Montréal artist David Tomas, a house designed by Ludwig Wittgenstein; Iranian-German artist Nairy Baghramian, furniture designer Janette Laverrière; and finally, Torontonian John Massey, a house designed by his father, Hart Massey.

A film program put together by guest curator Hajnalka Somogyi and comprising works by Johanna Billing, Domènec, Terence Gower, Ursula Mayer, Sadie Murdoch, Pia Rönicke and Judi Werthein will be presented in conjunction with the exhibition.

Runa Islam

May 21 to September 6, 2010

A rising star in the contemporary art world, British artist Runa Islam gained international recognition with her participation in the 2005 Venice Biennale and her nomination for the 2008 Turner Prize. This exhibition, a coproduction by the MAC and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, Australia, will offer five film installations, including a piece commissioned by the two institutions. Through these works, the artist delves into the history of experimental film, doing away with narrative frameworks and representation in favour of phenomenological experiences.

David K. Ross

May 21 to September 6, 2010

In this new series titled Attaché, Québec artist David K. Ross unveils a group of photographs on the system used for transporting and storing artworks. His high-resolution colour images of packing and storage crates employed by various museums reveal the textures and surfaces of these objects reminiscent of abstract painting, be it abstract expressionism, colour field painting or monochromatic abstraction. David K. Ross was one of the artists presented in the Musée’s first Québec Triennial, which included his series Dark Rooms.

Arrimage 2010 – Distortion

May 15 to 30, 2010

Exploring the subject of Distortion, the 2010 Arrimage exhibition showcases works created by more than 700 students from twenty Montréal elementary schools following their visits to the MAC and the Montréal Science Centre. This year’s theme prompted the student artists to rethink, transform and distort the pictorial and sculptural space. Fictional spaces, imaginary places and illusionistic effects come together in this group show resonating with multiple chords.

The exhibition is held under the Supporting Montréal Schools section of the Access to Cultural Resources Program, organized under the auspices of Québec’s Ministère de l’Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport.

Projections Series

Music Video V

July 14 to September 30, 2010

The Projections series will be back this summer with the fifth edition of Music Video. This year, the series will be devoted entirely to a selection of videos by visual artists. Pop sensibility has been a source of inspiration for many artists. Some of those featured here set out to make “real” video clips, while others created video works inspired by pop songs.

Friday Nocturnes

The Musée’s Friday Nocturnes will go on all summer. Coming on April 2, the Torngat trio, and on May 7, Elfin Saddle. The first Friday evening of every month, the Nocturnes offer access to the exhibition galleries, live music and bar service. Admission with regular Musée ticket or our $15 Wired card.

Montréal Museums Day

Open house at Montréal’s museums, routes plied by buses chartered for the occasion: this year’s Montréal Museums Day will take place on Sunday, May 30. Tying in with Montréal, City of Glass 2010, an event organized by the Board of Montréal Museum Directors, it will highlight the theme of glass. At the Musée d’art contemporain, admission to all exhibitions and activities is free. Visitors can enjoy the brand-new shows Yesterday’s Tomorrows, Runa Islam and David Ross, and the exhibitions of works from the Permanent Collection Paul-Émile Borduas – “Les frontières de nos rêves ne sont plus les mêmes” and With Glass, Under Glass, Without Glass, the latter mounted specially for the City of Glass event. It will also be the last chance to see the Arrimage show, which will close that day. The creation of a collective work made out of recycled eyeglasses, and an ice cream bar provided by Bilboquet ($) will only add to the festive atmosphere.

Source and Information

Anne Dongois
T. 514 826-2050
[email protected]