Michael Haslam, Hommage à Jesse Owens (detail), 1982. Collection Musée
d’art de Joliette. Photo: Richard-Max Tremblay

Itinerary in Contemporary Art. Bold New Directions (Version française)

January 27 – April 20, 2008
Opening reception: February 10, 2 pm
Join the curator, Marjolaine Labelle, for a tour of the exhibition: February 10, at 1:00 pm

What have you never dared to say, do or think? Since the 1960s, artists in Quebec and across Canada have been audacious in the art they produce. Whether by confronting, challenging or tricking us, these artists have dared to do things differently—and in the process created unusual and surprising works of art. The exhibition Itinerary in Contemporary Art. Bold New Directions offers visitors a look at more than 20 contemporary works from the Musée d’art de Joliette’s acclaimed collection. The exhibition focuses on five original themes, in which works are grouped according to the different ways they portray reality, how they convey feelings, technical skills or artistic traditions, how they challenge taboos or authority, how they criticize various social and economic situations, and lastly, how they trick viewers by revealing something other than what it seems to be at first glance.

A complement to the Web site Itinerary in Contemporary Art (www.itinerart.ca), the exhibition is an opportunity to visit the Museum and see the originals of the works displayed in digital format on the Web site. It also enables visitors to discover many other works in the Museum’s collection, some of which have never before been displayed in the galleries.

With this exhibition, curator Marjolaine Labelle gives visitors an original and imaginative look at Canadian contemporary art. To do so, she has chosen works by well-established artists, including Raymonde April, Pierre Ayot, Dominique Blain, Pierre Granche, Michael Snow, Jacques de Tonnancour and Bill Vazan, and by artists who deserve to be better known, such as Michel Archambault, Jon Baturin, Reynald Connolly, Michael Haslam and Annie Paquette.

Marjolaine Labelle holds a bachelor’s degree in art history and a master’s in museology from UQAM. Itinéraire en art contemporain. Sous le signe de l’audace, is her curatorial debut. She specializes in the exhibiting of contemporary art, more specifically, present-day and media art. She has been a curatorial assistant at the Musée d’art de Joliette and currently works as an assistant for travelling exhibitions at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal.