The imagery within this piece is inspired by monuments around the city of Montreal, such as the iconic George-Etienne Cartier structure in Mont Royal, created in 1919 to celebrate the culmination of Canada as a nation. Through manipulating the image of the angel I am celebrating and challenging this historical representation of Canada as it reaches its 150th birthday.
The site of this installation is also heavy with meaning and importance for Montreal. One of the oldest businesses on the Main Street of St.Laurent stood here for almost a century, a family-owned and operated Jewish tombstone and monument factory, L.Berson and Fils. Closed recently, this site stood empty with ghostly reminders of history and mortality. The prospect of the new development is what sits in the foreground of the installation, creating within itself a monument to the struggle of keeping culture alive in our world today and how to respect and represent what history can often erase.
The site of this installation is also heavy with meaning and importance for Montreal. One of the oldest businesses on the Main Street of St.Laurent stood here for almost a century, a family-owned and operated Jewish tombstone and monument factory, L.Berson and Fils. Closed recently, this site stood empty with ghostly reminders of history and mortality. The prospect of the new development is what sits in the foreground of the installation, creating within itself a monument to the struggle of keeping culture alive in our world today and how to respect and represent what history can often erase.