Words and public landscapes
It may often blend into the barrage of signs thrown at us every day, but textbased public art has a very important role in our lives, according to Concordia's Études françaises Professor Marc-André Brouillette.
He’s organizing an event exploring the relationship between the word and our public landscape, Oct. 15 and 16 at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (MAC).
“Public literature evokes a different experience than sculpture, for example” he says. “It uses the medium of words, something you don’t ordinarily see presented artistically in public, to challenge the viewer to relate to surrounding space differently.
“One of the goals of the event is to put the accent on this often-overlooked art and how it enriches our day-to-day existence” (see Journal, Oct. 9, 2008).
Careful to distinguish between public literature and words on conventional signage, Brouillette hopes to encourage a creative exchange on the topic.
Rather than a boardroom or lecture hall, choosing the MAC as a venue is intended to encourage an open dialogue. “It won’t be a traditional academic conference,” says Brouillette, the event’s lead organizer. “We’re welcoming critics, essayists and renowned artists to engage with students, the general public, academics from other fields. It’s open to everyone.”
The event is part of Brouillette’s research into text-based art in public spaces; he is principal investigator on the project funded by Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the Concordia-based group Présences du littéraire dans l’espace public canadien (PLEPUC).
In addition, the event will mark the official launch of PLEPUC’s new website. PLEPUC.org is a bilingual database of more than 600 literary works in Canadian public spaces. Brouillette will be part of the fourth President’s Conference Series (PCS) this fall at the Grande Bibliothèque (see p. 1). He will be featured at the final session on Dec. 1.
The PLEPUC event will welcome Ken Lum, Michel Goulet, Gilbert Boyer, Rose- Marie E. Goulet (whose An Explosion of Letters hangs in the Library Building atrium), among others.
Related links:
- President’s Conference Series
- PLEPUC.org
- Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal
- Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada