In your face!

They're like paparazzi to the anonymous, doggedly pursuing not the famous but the interesting, looking for that all-revealing shot. It quickly becomes clear why Joëlle Medina and Peter Gonda call their exhibit The Intrusive Moment.

"If I see somebody with an extraordinary face I'll follow them," Medina says cheerfully. "I get right up into people's faces."

The 32 photos on display at Espace 307 (460 Ste-Catherine W., #307) have been so well received that the Montreal-based pair are throwing a closing party this Friday, Aug. 15, from 5-9 p.m.

The arresting black-and-whites are well worth seeing. Though emotions in the photos vary, anger is prevalent. "The nature of photography lends itself to people getting angry," says Medina. Case in point: the fierce Arabic scolding she got after taking a picture of the woman pictured here. Medina doesn't speak Arabic, but she's become fluent in the universal language of reprimand, having been yelled at in countries from Cuba to the Czech Republic. Gonda's taken his fair share of abuse too, including a notable ass-whooping by a gang in France.

"We've always risked our lives for photography," says Medina. "We're just curious about life." » Matthew Woodley

Telling stories

In the late '80s, choreographer Estelle Clareton moved to Montreal from France to dance with Les Ballets jazz de Montréal and then with O Vertigo. After learning from others, Clareton went off on her own to cultivate her skills as a choreographer. Her interests in the theatre led her to a collaboration with local theatre director Wajdi Mouawad, and soon after she founded her own company Création Caféine.

A choreographer with a theatrical flare, Clareton has a knack for creating intimate spaces, and then transporting her audience into these worlds. A good example of this is her most recent work, De Julia à Émile, 1949. The hour-long piece puts actress Andrée Lachapelle in the spotlight along with seven dancers to tell the story of an older woman. The show ran this spring, under the direction of Kathy Casey of Montréal Danse and is now running at the Théâtre de Verdure from Aug. 15-16 at 8:30 p.m. For more info, call 871-4005. » Marites Carino

Puppet invasion

Probably the best puppet show to be seen on the island this weekend, Punk Puppets Take the Long Hall goes down on Friday, Aug. 15, at The Long Hall (450 Beaumont). The soirée features such masters as Lavender Diamond and The Long Armed Lady; Providence and L.A.-based activists/puppeteers Becky Stark and Xander Marro; and Vermonters The Insurrection Landscapers with their hit sci-fi show, "Kasparel and Harlequino do MArs?"

Doors open at 9 p.m., free.

The evening, which organizers promise will stretch on into the wee hours, is a benefit for L'Arterie, a new craft-co-op shop in the Elle Corazon space (176 Bernard W.). Doors open at 9 p.m., free. » Matthew Woodley

Guns, ammo and ink

When I hear the term "the tattooed lady" I think of sideshow freaks at the circus. This is precisely the kind of stereotyping Juliana España-Keller confronts in her work at Art Mûr (4826 St-Hubert). The subjects of her works, she says, are "a tattooed lady and others who might be considered marginal in contemporary society."

The exhibition contains three photographs of the tattooed España-Keller in a variety of masquerades. Entitled Wherever You Go, There You Are, each photograph plays with our preconceptions and the juxtaposition of opposites. In one we see a woman with black eyes standing in a hot-pink room; another shows sparkling shoes on Astroturf. There are also three different videos of "Greg," a short-order cook in Florida who always carries two guns and ammo in his knapsack. Highly recommended - the show has recently been extended to Aug. 23. » Christine Redfern

Is it Art?

ROCK ON: You too can be rock star, if your van doesn't break down on the way to the gig. That's the idea behind CBC's new stab at reality TV, Rock Camp. It's not typical reality fare where people get voted off the tough road to success, but a much more Canadian you-can-sorta-be-a-star-but-it's-only-so-so-anyway take on things. The show - based on a real rock camp in Halifax - pits junior rockers against the realities of the music business: "no money, erratic gear, questionable bookings, busted vans and hours of practice," say the promoters. Expect appearances and tips from some of Canada's finest including I, Mother Earth and Wide Mouth Mason. Keep up on the Web site, www.cbc.ca/rockcamp.

ArtsHole

ON THE ROAD: The cross-Canada artist-encountering adventures of Terminus 1525 producer Amil Niazi and her videographer colleague Louvens Remy can be followed at www.terminus1525.ca. The adventure began on Aug. 9 in Vancouver and winds up in St. John's on Aug. 31. This week: the Prairies. • TUNNELS TO TUNDRA: The wide-open spaces of la belle province are celebrated in Québec Grand Large, an exhibit of landscapes from all the regions on display in the deep, dark tunnels of Square-Victoria metro until Aug. 31.

ARTISTAT: Number of "Architectours" exploring the architecture, landscapes and urban planning of different sections of the city until Oct. 12 - www.heritagemontreal.qc.ca or 286-2662 for details: 18

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