Fly me to the moon

>> Seductive orbs, sexy decorations and primordial soup are on display

by EVE MACLAUREN

Over on the South Shore, Hugues Dugas has brought the moon and the stars into the Plein-Sud gallery in Paysage nocturne/night landscape. In this two-part installation, the only light illuminating the space emanates from the work itself. In one corner, a moon-like image is projected onto a spinning mirror and reflected onto the wall. As it repeatedly rises from the floor to the ceiling, the big orb appears primal, hypnotic and definitely seductive. In the opposite corner of the room, the ceiling panels are replaced with blue acetate, through which fiber-optic cables blink and glow. Unfortunately, instead of contemplating the heavens, I kept thinking about Christmas decorations.

Coincidentally, across town, Christmas decorations are put to good use in the painting "Super Trouper," by Doreen Wittenbols, in which a topless woman is tied up with coloured lights. It's part of a small exhibition, In and Out of Her Frame, that also includes work by locals Joanne Hui, Selenna Liss and Madeleine Sauvé. All of these women use themselves as the subjects of their work to question issues of identity, sexuality and gender roles. And if you're sick of going to uptight art spaces, a great atmosphere awaits at Elle Corazon. When I dropped by, the space was filled with the personal possessions of a gal who was trying to finance a trip to Greece. All the 25-cent goodies are gone now, but you can still catch the closing party tonight, April 26, with the artists, starting at 7 p.m.

Imaginary Organisms

Works by Renée Duval, Patrick Visentin, Mary Standjofski and Viviane White are showing with Steven Douglas in Douglas's former studio turned gallery, Galerie S. Douglas. Don't bother looking for a common link to tie these works together. Their unifying force is that the artists are all friends of Standjofski's. In the second room of the gallery, I was pleased to get a chance to see Phylum by Visentin, since I missed the previous showing at the Bain Coloniale. These imaginary organisms are straight out of the primordial soup at the base of our evolutionary tree. The original wax sculptures, shown in the pool at the previous exhibition, were described to me as looking like fried squid. Here, only the digital prints of the sculptures are exhibited and they're quite magical.

Before leaving this room take a look at the painting "The View From Here (Birch)" by Duval. At first glance it's a regular landscape painting, but through her manipulation of perspective, she pulls us into the woods like a little Hansel or Gretel. With that feeling in mind, go next door to the Belgo Building and see the collective installation Obstacles by Swiss artists Nika Spalinger, Christiane Hamacher, Jean-Damien Fleury and Vincent Marbacher at Observatoire 4. Not wanting to give it all away, I'll only say that there is no gingerbread house at the end of your walk... But you will get lost in the woods. :

Questions? EveMacLauren@sympatico.ca

Paysage nocturne/night landscape at Plein Sud (100 rue De Gentilly E., Longueuil) through May 13

In and Out of her Frame at Elle Corazon (176 Bernard W.) through April 29

Galerie S. Douglas (460 Ste-Catherine W., #403) through May 12

Obstacles, at Observatoire 4 (372 Ste-Catherine W.) through May 26