This past Friday, on April the 5th, Expression, an independent platform for students and artists based from HEC Montréal, organized a petite soirée sympa at the Espace des Arts on Sainte-Catherine. The event was called “Création Collective,” that rang true to its mission of combining the creative enthusiasms of young students with the dynamism of local artists under the same roof. The four minds behind the organization of the event are HEC students Aurélie, Magalie, Christelle, and Lou. The collaborations established with photography and illustration collectives Sven Sven and En Masse made it a loaded, but well executed event.
When we first arrived, we walked through the front doors down a rather long hallway lit with fluorescently sterile lighting, at the end of which were two sets of stairs going up, and going down. We assumed for no particular reason at all that the event was downstairs. Vintage black and white photographs hung in rows along the walls of the stairwell. On the way, we encountered a partygoer decked out in New Balance and strutting a duffel bag. He seemed old. Finally, at the bottom of the stairwell, the sign read, “The Kickboxing Studio of Downtown Montreal.” Things kind of made a little more sense from there: it was all sweaty boxers bleeding in monochrome frames along the walls. Our assumptions were wrong. We headed back up to a second floor studio where finally on scene, we made straight to the bar for our free glass of wine. A partnership with Vin de HEC was quite refreshing from the usual dépanneur variety. Well stocked, we started our rounds.
Graphite writer confused by venue choice
The layout of the space itself was a bit strange. It was comprised of four sections that led in separate straight angle directions. To the left, a small corridor leading to nowhere and straight ahead, a doorway onto the main dancefloor with the makeshift mini stage for the djs. To the right, the bar; and to the back, the restrooms. The kids from Expression made the event blend perfectly into the space, with most of the walls exhibiting works for the photo competition, and an entire wall reserved for the folks from En Masse.
Aurélie, one of four minds behind the project, explained to me how “Création Collective” was a different take on the sorts of events that Expression is used to organizing. The group has formerly held fashion shows, comedy shows, and other sorts of talent contests, but this time around, Espace des Arts accommodated seventeen student photographers from HEC to McGill to Concordia, with a couple of artists from En Masse that stuck around to draw a fifteen-foot long mural live. From 8:30PM to 12:30AM, the En Masse-ers went through at least three markers each in a performance illustration that was for the most part improvised, aside from a couple of planned figures. Expression did not forget mood lighting either—blues, reds, and greens lit up the black and white mural, while tipsy enthusiasts swayed to the French dance music and others unsteadily contemplated the works of the contestants.
The subjects and themes varied completely; from one corner of the exhibit you could find photographs reminiscent of the close-ups of landscape film stills from “Thelma and Louise,” to glittery Grace Jones-type subject fashion photography, to the opposite end of the space where beside frames of sassy, yet inviting Panameñas, hung ski photography on grandiose backdrops. Of the seventeen contestants, three winners – Sarr Maryse, Mateo de la Vega, and Paul Szernovicz – were awarded with free museum passes and, somewhat ironically, a photography class. Perhaps Expression’s greatest success though was that their organization is run based on the all-over-the-place zeal of driven students and committed artists. Mucho gusto is very much encouraged.
Expression organizes about four events a year.
By Matthieu Charriaud, a featured artist at the event
By Jean-Christophe Saint-Dizier, a featured artist
The Old Khmer Farmer 2 by Mateo de la Veg
