Fiction addiction

Anybody who loves the arts in Montreal should be raising a glass to Rhéal Olivier Lanthier and François St-Jacques. Their baby, Galerie Art Mûr (5826 St-Hubert), celebrates its 10th anniversary this month. Over the past decade, the curated and individual exhibitions they have presented to the Montreal public are without parallel in the local commercial art scene, and their huge anniversary exhibition Art Fiction is no exception.

Showcasing 28 Canadian artists, the selected works investigate a world located somewhere between the artificial and the real. Stop by and be inspired by Guillaume Lachapelle’s wood carving, Rafael Sottolichio’s seductive paintings, Dominique Morel’s furry nest-like sculpture, Judith Berry’s fictional landscapes, Lois Andison’s “Emerald City” made entirely from glass, Diana Thorneycroft’s drawings of Olive Oil, Marge and Wilma taking some nasty revenge on their men, newcomer David Spriggs’s unique three-dimensional spray paint works and so much more. Art Fiction runs until Nov. 11, info: 933-0711. —Christine Redfern

Pop circus

No, not Circus Pop—Dan Seligman’s still negotiating with the Shriners on that one. In the meantime, the closest Pop Montreal comes to a carnival can be found at the Canadian Grenadier Guards Armoury (4171 Esplanade), where a gazillion independent fashion designers, silkscreeners, soap sellers, record label reps, cake makers and real puppets gather for a two-day cultural fiesta, sale, spectacle and science fair.

Puces Pop, running Oct. 7–8, is the festival’s fun-for-the-whole-family exhibition, a place where you can buy an amazing dress, a handmade pillow and a delicious chocolate brownie all while listening to pop music, watching Film Pop projections, looking at Art Pop art or taking in the special 5 à 7 performances. Saturday’s such specials start with the best dance show you’ll find in town this weekend (5 p.m.), followed by the best fashion show you’ll find in town this weekend (6 p.m.). Sunday’s 5 à 7 starts and ends with live music care of People for Audio and four bands from Brooklyn. Admission is free. —Matthew Woodley

Jehovah’s rebel

Daniel Allen Cox cheerfully blurs the line between fact and fiction with his debut novel. “Tattoo This Madness In first started as a series of journals I kept while riding trains in Europe,” Cox explains. “The book is about growing up gay as a Jehovah’s Witness teenager, about breaking the rules yet still managing to find spiritual redemption. Oh yeah, and it’s also about blacklisted Smurfs.”

Cox launches Tattoo This Madness In at Zeke’s Gallery (3955 St-Laurent) this Friday. Audience members can count on a bravura roster of Montreal and Ottawa scribes, (Mark Harris, Matthew Fox, Tanya Schuh, Sarah Mangle, Steven Zytveld), a What-Makes-You-a-Bad-Jehovah’s-Witness survey and ebullient host Richard Burnett. That’s Friday, Oct. 6, 7:30 p.m., free. —Vincent Tinguely

XX turns X

Studio XX, the local artist-run centre for feminist gals with a technological bent, is celebrating its first decade of existence. Event X kicks off tonight, Oct. 5, with a tribute to Studio XX’s four founders: Kim Sawchuck, Patricia Kearns, Sheryl Hamilton and Kathy Kennedy.

Tomorrow morning starting at 10 a.m., a series of free roundtable discussions will take place with local favourites Isabelle Choinière, Nancy Tobin, Karmen Franinovic, as well as American Diane Willow and the Netherlands’ Nat Muller. The party becomes more physical tomorrow night when it moves to the Monument National (1182 St-Laurent). Starting at 8:30 p.m., Quebec-based multidisciplinary artist Diane Landry will present her new work, Morse Alphabet Soup, followed by a performance of Target Marketing by the Winnipeg-based duo of Shawna Dempsey and Lorri Millan. Everyone’s welcome—check out the complete schedule at www.studioxx.org. —Christine Redfern

Is it Art?

MASCOT ARTISTS WANTED: The 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games needs a mascot, and they’re currently looking for professional artists and designers who could create the perfect fit. “From Munich’s dachshund ‘Waldi’ (1972) to Montreal’s beaver ‘Amik,’ (1976) early Games mascots were based on animals that were unique to the host countries,” says the press release. “Calgary’s ‘Hidy’ and ‘Howdy’ represented the 1988 Olympic Winter Games. Barcelona (1992) introduced ‘Cobi,’ a cheeky dog with an avant-garde look, and many other mascots have followed based on humans, animals, mythical and imaginary creatures.” Hmmm... bud-smoking yoga orca? Got a better idea? Check out www.vancouver2010.com/mascot for details.

ArtsHole

SUBCULTURE STYLE: Celebrating its third issue of “redefining the conventional ideals of beauty,” Worn Fashion Journal gets festive Thursday, Oct. 12, 9 p.m., at Club Lambi (4465 St-Laurent). Headquarters Boutique kicks off their fashion show, featuring six independent Canadian designers, at 11:30 p.m., followed by dancing catered by DJ Teddy the K, and all that for $5. Visit www.wornjournal.com for a taste. • SURREAL BOND: Underneath their surface differences, 30-something Montreal painter Max Wyse and American octogenarian Anne Eaton Parker both blend fantasy and reality into a similar style of surreal. Their joint exhibition, Images Imaginés, continues at the Stewart Hall Gallery (176 Bord-du-Lac, Pointe Claire) until Oct. 15.

ARTISTAT: Number of works from edgy 18th-century artist Anne-Louis Girodet in the first ever exhibition of his works in North America, Girodet: Romantic Rebel, Oct. 12–Jan. 21, at the MMFA: 130

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