Vernissage June 1 at 6:30 p.m.
Montreal, May 17, 2016 – From June 2 to September 7, 2016, the Espace VERRE Gallery presents ASCÈTE, an exhibition showcasing the works of the graduating class of the Fine craft – glass option program offered in collaboration with the Cégep du Vieux Montréal. On Wednesday, June 1st at 6:30 p.m., the fruits of labour of seven ascetics, having shared a common quest for perfection with a discipline of body and soul, will be unveiled: Isabelle Alepins, Jean-François Boivin, Maciej Geoffroy, Gwenaël Guyot, Stéphanie Leblond, Sara Mélissa Paniagua, David Plante.
After seeing the Tiffany exhibition at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Isabelle Alepins was hooked: the fascinating material that is glass touched her imagination. Her sensitive work, allying the softness of femininity with accumulation, is a process nourished by the fundamental equilibrium she feels between humanity and nature.
Jean-François Boivin chose the challenge of working with everyday materials: window glass and bottles are bent to fit his vision and radically transformed. His installation Des galaxies et des hommes reflects his preceding passions for astronomy and mathematics which were again summoned to enrich his artistic vocabulary.
Maciej Geoffroy’s random constructions were created with the natural dancing movements of molten glass and copper – an exploratory series of work representing the futility and instantaneity of emotions. This gestural and intuitive process was aligned with his vision of our contemporary society.
A Henry David Thoreau of modern times, Gwenaël Guyot left the comfort of society for a survival trek deep in the forest. On the other hand, he is attracted by the hyperstructural side of graphic and web design, and programming. For him, glass is a very contradictory material which mirrors his own conflicting values.
Extremely meticulous, Stéphanie Leblond became a recluse for many hours to sculpt her fantastic figurines inspired by the Alice in Wonderland universe. She has created her own Wonderland, where Lewis Carroll’s famous characters have been reclaimed and given modern-day stereotypes.
Sara Mélissa Paniagua is a genuine aesthete that felt the need to rehash her technical skills. Her work is created through installation and accumulation, via photography, image and object – as many interventions attempting to interweave links, thus becoming a prolongation of memory. For her, glass is also a vestige, a material that allows her to leave her own mark.
It is the experimental process – the moment of surprise when opening a kiln – that truly impassions David Plante: playing with colours, patterns, and annealings. His trial and errors are true vectors of evolution for his artistic creations. He draws his inspiration not only from his own reminiscences, but from other people’s stories as well.
Espace VERRE is a glass art creativity centre located at 1200 Mill Street in Montreal. The gallery is open from Monday to Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., as well as the last Sunday of every month, from noon to 5 p.m. Admission is free of charge.
The graduates would like to express their outmost gratitude to the Fondation du cégep du Vieux Montréal for their generous contribution to the promotional campaign of the ASCÈTE exhibition.
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Source: Valérie Paquin
Communications Manager
514 933-6849
communication@espaceverre.qc.ca