In general, after its tender, ExMuro receives numerous proposals to populate the Old Port of Quebec with original works. However, it sometimes happens that the organization behind Passages contacts an artist with whom it would like to collaborate. This is particularly true of Luzinterruptus, a Spanish collective whose members are anonymous.
“It’s been on our minds for a few years,” says Michelle Drapeau, head of artistic programming at ExMuro, in an interview with Le Soleil.
To celebrate the conclusion of the tenth edition of Passages insolites, the cultural organization will place almost 11,000 illuminated books at the center of its activities.
The work “Literature vs. Transport” extends from the ExMuro offices on Place-Royale to the river via Rue du Marché-Finlay.
Luzinterruptus hits hard with this project, which requires the closure of a street and a complete stop to traffic to make room for books and art.
Founded in 2008, the dedicated group has showcased many of their creations around the world. While many criticize the amount of plastic waste that humans produce, others attack issues such as water consumption, the protection of fauna and flora or the excesses of nuclear energy.
The artists use their art to denounce certain issues, but do so with a good dose of poetry and by using light to direct the audience’s gaze towards the urban environment.
Like the group’s other ever-ephemeral creations, Literature vs Traffic only runs for about four hours.
Literature vs. Traffic required extensive collecting to find thousands of used books in the Quebec region. Once the pieces were collected, the Passages insolites team worked entirely remotely with the artists to recreate the project’s various pieces.
Thanks to many emails and “concrete instructions,” the preparation of the work went smoothly, affirms Ms. Drapeau, emphasizing that this is not the collective’s first virtual collaboration.
“Literature vs Traffic” was presented particularly in the United States and Australia.
At the end of the event, viewers are invited to immerse themselves in the river of stories to collect one or more books. Books that have not found a buyer “will be donated or reused in future ExMuro projects,” the organization states.
work in groups
The fact that Luzinterruptus’ works integrate easily into public spaces and leave no trace after their departure is partly because the artists involve many people in their projects.
“Luzinterruptus is a collective that systematically works with reclaimed and recycled materials. In this case used books. But another very important part of their work is citizen participation,” notes Michelle Drapeau.
We guessed it: It’s not easy to find 11,000 books in a few weeks. Finding, recovering and sorting used works required the efforts of more than forty volunteers.
“It is great to see that a monumental installation like Littérature vs Trafic is possible thanks to the people of Quebec who answered the call in large numbers.” »
— Michelle Drapeau, artistic program manager at ExMuro
Several bookstores in the region opened their doors to the organization and served as collection points for donated books. The Bibliothèque de Québec and the boutique Ordi-Livres Signes d’Espoir also helped by delivering thousands of books, says Ms. Drapeau.
The ExMuro team is still looking for volunteers to take part in the installation of the works on Rue du Marché-Finlay.
The unveiling of Literature vs Traffic will take place on Saturday October 14th from 6pm to 10pm at Place Royale. For more information, visit the Passages insolites website.