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>> Enough stuff to keep you warm and cozy

THE SWEET LIFE: Alex Da Corte’s “Activity #9”

by CHRISTINE REDFERN

“The party’s nearly over. But the guests are going to stay. They have no place else to go. People who weren’t invited are beginning to arrive. The house is a mess. We must all get together and without saying a word clean it up.”

This may sound a lot like your place in this post-holiday stupor, but it’s a quote from Douglas Crimp’s On the Museum’s Ruins, used by Michael A. Robinson in discussing his recent work. Robinson’s artfully arranged mess, titled The Debris Field is on view until Feb. 23 at Pierre-François Ouellette (372 Ste-Catherine W., #216). Also bringing to mind the post-holiday spirit is Reject by Peter Flemming in Articule’s window (262 Fairmount W.). It is the last weekend to see this installation of a suspended, upside down Christmas tree that’s losing its needles. If you deposit 25 cents, the tree shakes for 25 seconds. If you go tomorrow night (Jan. 11), the gallery will be hosting a post-holiday party, with a raffle and a twisted version of “Jingle Bells” (“Bingle Jells”). The fun starts at 5 p.m.

Montreal painter Rick Leong and Philadelphia artist Alex Da Corte open their exhibitions tonight (Jan. 10) from 6–9 p.m. at the Parisian Laundry (3550 St-Antoine W.). Corte’s exhibition

I Think About You All the Time is billed as being about “inspirational love.” Not sure about the inspirational part, but I would love to put just one more strawberry in that fellow’s mouth, if you know what I mean.

Robyn Moody’s TARDIS (Time And Relative Dimensions In Space) opens tomorrow (Jan. 11) from 5–9 p.m. at SKOL (372 Ste Catherine W, #314). This exhibition promises to transport you to the heavens via an endlessly skipping version of Holst’s The Planets and constellations created with LEDs. Moody, an expert gadget maker, is offering an informal workshop this Saturday Jan. 12 from 1–4 p.m. in the gallery. If you go, bring your junk—anything with motorized parts (old kitchen appliances or toys, plus batteries if required) and you will leave with a “mechanical musical instrument of art.”

Jessica Field presents videos about the misbehaving robots she created, opening Jan. 18, 5 p.m. at Optica (372 Ste-Catherine W., #508). Karen Trask brings together weaving, magnetic tape and James Joyce’s Ulysses in her performance-installation from Jan. 18 (7 p.m.)–Feb. 10 at Galerie la Centrale (4296 St-Laurent).

EVOLUTIONARY:
Geoffrey Farmer’s “The Last 2,000 Years”

Switch hitting

New in town—Toronto’s Edward Day Gallery changes places Jan. 17–Feb. 16 with our own Art Mûr (5826 St-Hubert) with the group show Spitting Image. Vernissage is on Jan. 19, 3–5 p.m., showing work by 10 artists including, Angela Grossmann, Catherine Heard and John Oswald. Ongoing at UQÀM is EntreVoir, another promising group exhibition, with work by Michel Archambault, Michel Goulet, Dil Hildebrand, Fernand Leduc and Janet Werner.

To transport you away from the mid-winter blues, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts’ big new exhibition ¡Cuba! Art and History From 1868 to Today, opens Jan. 31. It includes over 400 works of art: paintings, photographs, video, installations and a selection of pre- and post-revolution posters. While at the Musée d’art contemporain starting Feb. 8, two artists I’m looking forward to seeing are Yannick Pouliot and Vancouver-based Geoffrey Farmer.

Also worth checking out: Érick d’Orion’s Solo de musique conrète pour 6 pianos sans pianiste opens Feb. 23 at Oboro (4001 Berri). In this installation, d’Orion shows what kind of music six beat-up pianos can make when unencumbered by musicians or scores. You can also catch one of d’Orion’s live musical performances during this year’s Nuit Blanche, March 1–2.

Nelson Henricks finds God in his latest two-channel video called “Map of the City” at Articule Feb. 29–March 30. And put your hands together, the International Edgy Women Festival is back—no thanks to the foolish jury who turned down their festival funding last year. 2008’s talented line-up includes Dayna McLeod, Lazlo Pearlman (U.K.) and the always brilliant Nathalie Claude.

Lastly, if your new year’s resolution was to get your own hands dirty, be part of the Guerrilla Art Project hosted by l’Oeil dans l’Front at Dépanneur Café (206 Bernard W.: Jan. 16, 23 and 30, 3–6 p.m.) and at Casa del Popolo (4873 St-Laurent: Feb. 5, 12, 19 and 26, 3–7 p.m.). These bookmark-making workshops will lead to an exhibition in April, then bookmarks will be distributed anonymously throughout Montreal libraries.