After Van Gogh and Picasso, it’s time for a new artistic immersion, this time in the Impressionist universe. As a great world premiere as a bonus.
Imagine monet is coming to us exclusively this Wednesday, at Arsenal contemporary art Montreal.
For the first time, this is not an adaptation, but a creation of the famous duo of designers (Annabelle Mauger and Julien Baron) to whom we owe the two imposing last dives (seen by 1 million visitors, across Canada and the United States). And already, 20,000 tickets have gone out.
“This project is close to my heart, because we created it here. In this room that I love! “Said Annabelle Mauger Tuesday, on the sidelines of the launch.
Ahead of our questions, the native of Normandy (like the father of Impressionism) continues with enthusiasm: “Why immersion? she says. Because Claude Monet is the father of impressionism, but also of immersion! ” Is that so ? “Towards the end of his life, he turned to abstraction, and his last Water lilies, created for the Musée de l’Orangerie in Paris, are paintings that are over 17 m long! ”
At a press conference, the designer said: “I want to tell you that these paintings are made for this exhibition! ”
Hence the manifest desire to “immerse the spectator”, she says, a desire taken up here in this vast rectangular space of 1200 m2, in the industrial gallery of the Griffintown district. On walls eight meters high, from the ground to the ceiling via the floor, without forgetting this elliptical shape in the center of the room (a nod to the Orangery), are projected (using around fifty projectors) no less than 200 works by the artist. And the most famous are all there: of his Cathedrals to Poppies obviously going through its Water lilies, in which we literally “enter” by noticing, in addition to the stroke of the brush, sometimes even a loose hair (or two)!
“Behind each silhouette hides a mirage,” sums up Annabelle Mauger. Approaching, we discover that there are no lines, but only touches of paint. And it is interesting to present it in this way, in immersion. ”
The exhibition, to the sound of soft classical music (Bizet, Saint-Saëns, etc.), is divided here into three parts: Monet and his environment (his gardens, his family, his children); his travels (Venice, London); and the Water lilies, a prolific series of his gardens in Giverny (in Normandy), which he developed for no less than 40 years of his life.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Annabelle Mauger, designer ofImagine monet
Here and there, some animations: falling leaves, or a growing tree. But not too much, promises Julien Baron, accomplice and co-director of the exhibition. “The principle is not to distort the painter’s work, he insists, but to show the first work. […] Show the work from different angles than that seen in a museum. […] We do not want to take the place of museums. But we would like to be a complement. ”
When asked how Monet would react today, he replies, “I don’t know. We don’t pretend to be in his head. We try to imagine. […] On the one hand, [Imagine Monet] is an honor, but it is also recovery. So, it’s difficult to say. “One thing is certain, he concludes,” Monet gives us a little levity in this period. And it feels good ! ”
Imagine monet is presented at Arsenal contemporary art Montreal until February 27. Reservation and health passport required. Allow about thirty minutes.