It's Art to Me

The other night we went to a film at the Cinema Imperial, an old vaudeville theatre/classic movie theatre on rue Bleury. It's been restored and is used during the film festival, and rented for other events; there are plush red seats, elaborate gilded plasterwork; murals featuring scantily-clad cherubs; and a painted tromp l'oeil curtain with Victoria's crown in the center. It's pretty ugly, to me, but a remarkable period piece.

Across the street, though, some very contemporary painting was happening. Two huge brick buildings were the site of a graffiti festival, or contest, or happening - we weren't sure. All along the sides of these buildings, scaffolding had been set up, and graffiti artist were intently working on their own sections while admirers hung out, encouraged, took photos. In a little open-sided tent, a DJ with two turntables played loud music.We were by far the oldest people in the crowd, which featured a lot of punk clothing, piercings, and tattoos. I was pretty impressed by some of the work on the walls, and also by the fine control the painters had over their spray cans. Giving the graffiti artists a place to showcase their work seemed like a pretty sensible idea, too, if that's what the city was doing. Though graffiti of this caliber is something I do stop to look at, this event made me realize there was a lot more going on in the local scene, with artists who were really serious about their work.

I think this may have been part of the Under Pressure 2007 Montreal graffiti contest...does anyone know?

Comments

[krish]

Beth,

Again, what wonderful photos! You really do have an eye.
Have a great weekend.

Krish

[Rachel]

This morning I found myself looking back at my photographs from Montreal, at the very start of last summer, and marveling at the beauty of the graffiti. It's one of my primary associations with your city...

[The Chapatikid]

Gorgeous photos! What I love about graffiti in Montreal is that the government actually funds these events sometimes (taking the edge off the real practice, but legitimizing it as an art form). This is the Meeting of Styles (MOS) event which takes place around the world, taking place in Montreal. Another fantastic place to look at graffiti is under the Autoroute Ville Marie in St. Henri. Just walk along under the autoroute.