Updated yesterday at 9:00 am.
Does the idea of entering an art gallery intimidate you? Do you think you need to be an art connoisseur or have the means to purchase a work? Think again.
“Creating a context in which people feel comfortable entering a gallery” is the focus of Galeries Weekend Montréal, which begins this Thursday. In four tours, the public is invited to visit 23 galleries that offer special programs and are especially open on Sundays. “We take the visitor by the hand,” says Julie Lacroix, general director of the Association of Contemporary Art Galleries (AGAC), to whom we also owe the Plural contemporary art fair.
We decided to visit the three most remote galleries: that of Chris Andrews, which has just opened in a quiet corner of Villeray, and the TAP gallery in Saint-Michel (in the Ateliers 3333 building, project by Marc Séguin). , then that of Yves Laroche in Chabanel.
The exhibitions that will be open to the public at the end of the week were in preparation, but we were able to speak to the gallery owners.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
Chris Andrews is excited to be taking part in Galeries Weekend Montréal for the first time.
First stop: Chris Andrews Gallery
No longer able to pay the rent on his old space in Mile End, Chris Andrews decided last March to set up shop in a corner of Rue Villeray Est where you wouldn’t expect to find an art gallery. Every day, and this was also the case during our visit, passers-by stop in front of the window out of curiosity.
“I love the neighborhood and there are a lot of artists who live in the area,” says Chris Andrews.
This weekend he will present another exhibition of drawings called Public Life. Bringing together works by three New York artists (Miguel Bendaña, Justin Chance and Sojourner Truth Parsons) as well as Toronto-based Connie Wilson and Montreal-based Connor Bokovay. “Drawing tells the story of life,” argues Chris Andrews. It’s a type of communication that can have a big impact. »
A reception in the presence of the artists is also planned for Saturday in the gallery.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY CHRIS ANDREWS
Letting Go, by Sojourner Truth Parsons
Chris Andrews grew up in Woodstock, Ontario. He studied and lived in Toronto before settling in Montreal. Is 29 years young for a gallery owner? Yes, he agrees. “It’s more feasible in Montreal than anywhere else,” adds the man, who also does sculpture.
In 1660, Villeray was formerly inhabited by a tailor, who still owns the building and still lives on the upper floor. What would Chris Andrews say to someone who is afraid to enter a gallery? “I understand that someone might feel like it’s unattainable, but it’s all about having an experience with art. »
You can even dislike the works and not talk to the gallery owner, he adds dryly.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
Marx Ruiz-Wilson, director of TAP Gallery
Second stop: the TAP Gallery
“In a gallery, all reactions are good,” says Marx Ruiz-Wilson, director of TAP Gallery.
This isn’t a gallery you just walk into by chance, as it’s located on Crémazie Boulevard overlooking Highway 40. However, unlike the exhibition halls in Old Montreal or Mile End, the gallery is surrounded by artists’ studios.
In fact, TAP is located in the Ateliers 333 building, a project launched two years ago by Marc Séguin.
The gallery had several lives: it was born in Montreal, moved to Toronto and finally returned to Saint-Michel. “It’s a question of price and survival,” jokes Marx Ruiz-Wilson. This is a long-term rental agreement. »
Why did you turn to curation work rather than creation? It all started in 2016 with a podcast show called “Into This” where he spoke to artists. He then created his first exhibition in the basement of his building in the “McGill Ghetto”. “I want to highlight artists from different backgrounds,” says the man, who is originally from Mexico and has a second job in pharmaceuticals.
This weekend, Marx Ruiz-Wilson is proud to present the exhibition Reality Sucks 3 by Mathieu Cardin, an artist who questions what oscillates between true and false, or between reality and fiction.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
A small part of Mathieu Cardin’s installation
“It asks the question: What do you believe and why? » says Marx Ruiz-Wilson.
Note for those interested: The opening will take place this Thursday at 5 p.m.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
Yves Laroche and Alexis Paradis-Lemieux
Third stop: Yves Laroche Gallery in Chabanel
Unlike the TAP Gallery and that of Chris Andrews, the Yves Laroche Gallery is no longer in the making. In his office there are works by Riopelle and Serge Lemoyne, but also by Shepard Fairey and Ron English.
However, the renowned gallery owner from Montreal still describes himself as a lover of the “underground”. As soon as we arrived, he told us that he regretted not being able to complete the big project he had started with the cartoonist Henriette Valium, who died in 2021.
Yves Laroche was a gallery owner in Old Montreal for a long time, then in Little Italy. Here he is in Chabanel, where he also founded artist studios. “Everyone told me not to come here, but the demand is so great that I will move to another floor. »
With multi-year rental agreements, 99 Chabanel’s artists can have peace of mind. “I’m a guy who refuses to gentrify,” says Yves Laroche, who works closely with Alexis Paradis-Lemieux as an assistant director.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
Zoltan Veevaete at the end of editing
Alexis is the curator of the exhibition “Varie personas” by Zoltan Veevaete, presented during Galeries Weekend Montréal. The public can view a digital installation and paintings by the Montreal artist. “It balances my two personalities,” says the man, who is interested in the duality between digital and real images. As a painter who felt a little lost in his practice, jumping into digital art allowed him a rebirth, he explains.
Do you want to know more? Zoltan Veevaete will be at Galerie Yves Laroche this Thursday evening during the opening from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Don’t be intimidated. The aim of Galeries Weekend Montréal is to create a connection between the public, gallerists and artists.