Utopia Moment sketches and writing by Jack Ruttan and friends

One of the pleasures of living in this little neighbourhood here (whether it’s called “Centre Sud” or “Les Faubourgs” –I’m really not so sure) is the now annual urban art event L`Écho d’un Fleuve, taking place on rue Dufresne, just below my front door here on Rouen. Who’d have thought there were so many artists living here? But it is that kind of area, even though it’s changed over the 20 years I’ve lived in this little apartment I love so much.

Not much else to say, except to present snaps, sketches, and video I took over the weekend. Didn’t get everyone’s name, and not so happy typing all of this French, what with accents, and all, but I’ll give it a go.

Friday night was an evening ghost tour, in search of Marguerite-Ida, a woman who vanished in this area during the 1930s. With neighbours and their kids, we tramped past installations, and even into people’s apartments, as below:

Since this was taking place at night, things were appropriately spooky. But then, even I’ve got tales to tell about murders and shady dealings in this low-rent area!

Shot some video, too. Sometimes it’s hard to see, because it was dark out, and it was only my pocket camera, but there is the sound.

This was a great performance, but I can’t quite find out the names of the performers. Happened a couple of blocks away from here.

The next day saw rue Dufresne blocked off, and lots of art events happening. Here’s gumboot dancing, and a robot man.

My other shots I’m presenting as a slideshow. But, you can click on it, and get what info I could scrounge up.

It was a fun time. I didn’t do a lot of painting, except for the view that heads up this piece, and the page of sketches of cool types below.

A cute little girl was watching me paint that. So, I let her have a go with the paints, and she made the pretty little drawing below. She was about 9 or 10 years old, but kept a perfect point on my Chinese brush. So, I’m expecting great things from her in later years. Let her keep the drawing, of course, after I snapped it.

In all, a very pleasant weekend.

This is kind of cool, if deranged. Drawn with a set of colour ball point pens. Reminds me a little of Louis Wain’s cats, but I haven’t completely gone around the bend yet. Writing an odd script for a science fiction comic story. It would be nice to finish that, and actually do something of it. I feel like starting to draw it right away. But I want to get further along in the story, to see if there is a story there. Already, it’s going places I wouldn’t have thought. But, they’re interesting places.

I’ve really had trouble getting work going that isn’t just for a paycheck. But I don’t just want to be a freelance drone, working on other people’s projects. I want to get out some stories of my own. In whatever form. Some of those forms might be surprising, in the future, if I can get certain projects off the ground.

At the moment, they’re just in my head. But it’s a new year, and I have no idea what i’ll be doing for most of it. That’s the kind of life this is.

I used to write for art journals, and about art, in newspapers. I’ve been out of that world for a while. It seems a little different when you’ve been on the outside, though I still feel at home in a gallery or museum. Not everyone feels that way!

Maybe I’m getting a little back into writing about art through these blog postings, and by visiting events. Even the comic convention. They’re all artists, striving, creating stuff that doesn’t have practical utility, and doing it for reasons they might not always understand. You can talk about the kind of art, whether it’s pleasing or not, and how much money it sells for, but all of it’s similar in some ways. Though the artists would never be able to agree on that.

Anyhow, here’s a yard I walk by often, on my way to the metro. It’s on my street, rue de Rouen, between Iberville and Frontenac streets in Montreal. There’s sometimes an angry dog barking at me from behind the fence, but also some funny things to see, made out of bits of welded junk, and other scraps.

It’s more pretty in the summer, when there’s a fountain running out of the rocking horse’s nose. Sometimes there are Christmas lights around, even during the summer. The gentleman who built the place was in the back, and I got him to pose for a picture.

Here’s a news flash. He tells me he’s turning this shed next door, which used to be a rehearsal space for some heavy metal bands, into a café, next year. I’ll keep you posted on how that turns out! The Café Touski was a bit of a run-down place when it started, and now it’s quite popular. The neighbourhood continues to change.

Speaking of changes, when I moved into the neighbourhood, this building used to be a “Value Explosion” kind of dollar store. Now it’s apartments, with big display windows. That’s where I found this chair, and window cat.

And then finally, speaking of art in the wild, here’s a great painting on the wall inside the Frontenac Metro!

Sad to hear about the death of Henry Lehman. You can read about it on the Fagstein blog here, along with some writing by him.

There weren’t many art writers working in English in Montreal. So, during the few times I ran into him, at an art opening, or on the street, we could chat and share experiences. Funny, but what we most seemed to share were the occasional mistakes: getting a name wrong, for instance, or some fact. I think, since I was in the same business, he could confess sins to me without fear of judgment.

It’s not always easy being an art critic. Artists and galleries rely on you to get the word out about their shows, but don’t want your opinion to get in the way. On the other hand, readers and editors want an exciting story, or at least to learn a little about art in this city. Hard making a living writing about art, and Lehman did that, for a while. Now he joins the pantheon.

There were a number of art-related events happening right under my nose here in Centre Sud Montreal. So I snapped a few pictures, dutiful type that I am. It’s a chance to see what one’s arty neighbours are doing.

Just a few steps from my front door, I happened on the sign above.

(As usual, more shots are available, if you click on the picture)

It was a temporary show by a Quebec artist, Julien Froment. At least it got me into this building, the Carrefour St-Eusébe. I’ve wondered what goes on in it, besides a day-care, but rarely get an excuse to step inside. Not quite my scene, but great that such things are going on.

Then, off down the street to rue Parthenais, and the open house at Le Chat Des Artistes, a former industrial building converted into low-cost artists’ and artisan’s studios. Saw this potato masher made in the form of our Prime Minister’s face:

Not sure about the political statement being made, but it was funny. Another studio had objects made from recycled umbrella handles, and other wooden objects.

(please click on the photos to find out contact info for the artists)

He gets his raw material out of stuff thrown out by the various manufacturers. Often, he’s amazed at the stuff he finds.

It’s nice to be able to prowl around studios, like this one of artist Julie Desmarais. Rather reminds me of my days as a visual arts journalist. I get to ask silly questions, too!

These hat maker’s forms remind me of asian lingams:

The studio doors were painted to be used as chalkboards:

Then I went down the street to the nearby Grover Building, which was also having kind of an open studio day. Took fewer pictures here, but had some interesting chats. Ran into Pink Pam, whom I had also seen at the recent Expozine:

This was also a cool display, from Marlène Ferrari: an artist who works with typography and graphics:

Had some more conversations, with artist David Edwards, and a glass artist I didn’t get the name of.

Wish I was there, actually. Maybe not at the moment, because it’s the rainy season. But my friends over there tell me I have a place to stay if I want to drop in. Can also pick up my sketchbook full of Bangkok drawings I left over there.

But I was going through old disks, and found this one full of pictures of the event I help organise over there at the Tadu Gallery, with my friend, Peter Mantello. “Montreal Comix Come to Thailand” was the catchphrase. Would like to come back. Or have some of Thailand come to Montreal.

They’re similar places. Strong culturally, but with a dominating culture nearby (Japan, or the US in our case), and a strong religious background (the “odd” sons got sent to the monastery, the same way they went to seminary in Quebec to keep them out of mischief).

I didn’t remember these shots, and wondered if I actually put them up. Then I found a link to sequential.org’s website of Canadian comic news, and found them there, thanks to Salgood Sam. [link]

They were taken by the office staff, because I, silly boy, hadn’t brought a camera.

Anyhow, the exhibition was prints of work from 15 mainly Montreal-based alternative comic artists. Yours truly was artist in Residence. I found myself in a condo on the outskirts of Bangkok, in which Jane Birkin had recently being staying. I was also conducting weekly workshops in cartooning, which was fun. Though I didn’t have much to teach. Mostly let people cut loose and draw. Below is one of the Bangkok pro artists, decorating a wall.

A few of those drawings are in my books. I’ll look for them and post them. In the meanwhile, I’ve put pages from the elaborate brochure/catalog Peter produced for the event.

I hope he’s well, but I found him there much changed from the person I knew in Montreal. Ohh, Bangkok… Bangkok.

It was a nice day, finally, last Sunday, so I went to rue Ste. Catherine East between Papineau and Berri to take in the FIMA, or Festival Montreal des Arts. Basically, the street is blocked off, and a lot of artists set up there in tents, to display and hawk their wares.

I myself did a kind of indifferent sketch above. Was sort of jangled, and people kept on coming up to me and asking inane questions, like I was part of the show. One guy asked me why I bothered sketching, when I could get an image much more quickly and accurately by taking a picture.

Well, I did take pictures, and here they are:

This is another artist, also sketching the street. Maybe in a little more of a controlled way.

Her in her tent, with her paintings:

Some of her pictures, lined up on the table.

The art’s kind of middle of the road. Stuff I’m not totally crazy about, but might look good in your living room. But since this area is known as Montreal’s “Gay Village,” there was lots of other stuff to see:

Scooters outside the local leather bar:

“Beach” volleyball:

Another typical sight on the street, especially in this area around this season:

These people were inside an empty mobile home, enacting the entire script of the movie The Fifth Element.

There’s video of this, which I will share when it’s online. Generally, a lot of fun was had, which is part of what art is about.

They had set up right on the street below my place, so after a little trepidation, and listening to the noise, I came down and joined in. You can see more photos if you click on one:

Nice stance. Cardboard couture was in, but I don’t think it would last in the rain.

Polar Bear made out of plastic bags:

More cardboard: an entire town this time:

She gave “Poetic Consultations.” Wrote me a prescription out of Monty Python: “Always Look at the Bright Side of Life.” (That’s Lucy from Peanuts in the lower right corner)

Two videos: first, the band:

Next, Micro Impro games. In French (that’s the language of the ‘hood!):

Interesting stuff happening down the street. Last night I wandered into a block party/art show called L’Écho d’un Fleuve (“The Echo of a River”). Took some photos:

Please click on one and check the whole set to learn more. I also shot hand-held you-are-there video of a performance:

This blog has more on the event, which continues all weekend. See the website, too: [link]