West Bank story
ROADBLOCK:
A video still from Brett Story’s Roads Through Palestine
Filmmaker Brett Story spent part of her childhood in the West Bank when her photographer mom fell in love with the place and the people. On a recent return journey, she was struck by how much hasn’t changed. “Twenty-five years later, there’s the same curfews, checkpoints and settlement incursions on the land, but all of that has been amplified,” says Story. “The most striking difference is the wall.”
Tomorrow, Sept. 7, at 8 p.m. at Sala Rossa (4848 St-Laurent), for $5–$15, Story screens Roads Through Palestine, an experimental film with a piano soundtrack by Mirror freelancer Stefan Christoff. “I’m trying to evoke the feeling of geographic constraint that is so prevalent in Palestine,” Story says. “It deals in a cinematic, poetic way with the architecture of apartheid in Palestinian territories.” The event, a benefit for Tadamon! also features poet and singer Mohamed Mehdi, Moroccan composer Hassan el-Hadi, and la Banda de Gaza. For more info, check out: tadamon.resist.ca.
by VINCENT TINGUELY
Dancing in the bubble
After holing up for weeks in creation mode at Studio 303, the summer residency artists are coming out next weekend (Sept. 14–15) for Studio 303’s Vernissage-danse #134: Emerging.
Jacques Poulin-Denis is the director behind DORS, a multi-disciplinary piece he says investigates “the unique quality of being awake in the middle of the night.”
The choreographer-composer, who discovered dance while studying theatre, worked with a dozen artists on this “collaborative experiment,” which strives to give the audience an experience. “We want people to feel involved, so they’re with us in the bubble and not just watching from outside,” he says. Playfully reluctant to give details, Poulin-Denis will only explain that the new show means throwing the conventional stage/spectator set-up out the window.
The Still Collective will open the event presenting their duet, In the Place on Our Hands, during the first half of the evening. Head over to Studio 303 (372 Ste-Catherine W., #303) on Sept. 14, at 8:30 p.m. and Sept. 15, at both 6 p.m. and 9 p.m., $10–$12. Info: (514) 393-3771.
by MARITES CARINO
Art at Osheaga
Summer may have one foot out the door but it’s not time to hang-up the festival pass just yet. The Osheaga Arts Festival takes place this weekend (Sept. 8–9), alongside its musical counterpart, letting us rage against the dying light of the season for just a little bit longer.
Playing on the theme of Human Nature, this year’s exhibit examines the delicate balance of humanity in the natural environment. There’s a number of featured  artists, including the 15-member strong artist group The YPF, illustrator Randall Finnerty’s charcoal wilderness, the ZooLab Project featuring poster art and a paint-off to the music of Sixtoo and others between HVW8 and guerrilla street art movement, the Kops Crew.
Also on view is Daft Punk’s Electroma, the electro duo’s recent film in which heartbroken robots criss-cross the American landscape on a quest to become human.
If all the excitement—and the question of whether a trip across the States can turn anyone human—is taking its toll, head over to The Zen Garden (the festival’s equivalent of a chill-out room) for some sand raking and Dharma meditation. All events take place at the Salon des Arts venue. See www.osheaga.com for more info.
by SACHA JACKSON
Is it art?
NO GLOVE NO LOVE: Combine “eco-chic” with the phrase “straight from the NY runways!” as this press release does, and suddenly everyone’s ears perk up. So what, you ask, is the hottest trend from the tastemaking city of Manhattan? Unbleached cotton, perhaps? Or purses made from plastic bags? The answer: Cupcoats.
Cupcoats, as the name suggests, are pretty much coats for your cup. The  disposable coffee cup you get every morning from Starbucks while driving your Escalade to work. From now on tell that college-age cutie serving you to hold the cardboard sleeve because you brought your own reusable Cupcoat. Easily fitting around most 12, 16 and 20-ounce paper cups, and with six different collections to match your outfit/personality, these eco-friendly darlings enable you to help save the planet one double-shot latte at a time.
The idea itself is admirable, but hasn’t anyone heard of a travel mug? Get your own celebrity inspired sleeve at www.cupcouture.com.
Arts
hole
MOUTHWATERING: Billed as a “delicious meal for the contemporary brain,” the Art Affair is a multidisciplinary event that is bound to please all of your cultural taste buds—or so it would seem. With a sample of everything from animated shorts and sculpture to musical, dance and DJ performances, The Art Affair, which takes place Sept. 6 at 6 p.m. (94 Ste-Catherine W., #7), is an example of the cultural buffet otherwise known as Montreal. Admission is PWYC.
How to Act: The Montreal School of Performing Arts celebrates its 15th anniversary this weekend with an open house on Sept. 8 from 2–4 p.m., offering free trial classes so you can let loose your inner Al Pacino.
Artistat
The number of years that the Montreal Botanical Gardens has been lighting up the city with their annual Magic of Lanterns event, which takes place in the Chinese Garden from Sept. 7 to Oct. 31: 15 |
