Espace Maurice brings the Datura Rust Belt to Montreal – Concordian

The show features work by Alex Patrick Dyke, Cleo Schelander, Ariane Gagne (eli del), Tom Roeschlein, Julien Parant-Marquis, Justin Apperly, Jason Van Hoose, Dylan Weaver and Paul Jackson Burgess.

After visiting Datura, Espace Maurice's latest offering, I encountered an endless stream of people passing by in their Sunday best: puffy jackets, Arcteryx loafers and shiny sunglasses. They all seemed to be going to dinner. a sign that the capitalist machine is rolling happily.

I noticed this because it couldn't have been more different from what I had met at Datura the previous day. Concordia graduate Marie Segolen K., founder of the gallery. Curated by Brawl, the group show features a diverse range of artists and practices whose work engages with the dark side of capitalism.

All of the works in the show were created in Youngstown, Ohio, most of them as part of a 10-day residency last fall. Through its subject matter and significance, the artworks reflect the long-lasting impact of the city, which was hit hard by factory closures in the 1970s. A number of parts are made by reusing materials such as car window frames or rusted nails.

The residency came about thanks to Brawl watching the documentary Greyland (directed by Alexandra Sicotte-Leveske) Youngstown was filmed and contacted by one of the local residents featured in the film, Rocco Site. This was the beginning of a collaboration that led to an Ohio residency where artists from New York, Montreal, Yukon and Youngstown come together to create art currently on display at Espace Maurice. The show represents only a small portion of what was produced during the residency, but it is accompanied by a catalog documenting the works as they were installed in Youngstown in a Site-owned warehouse.

The show examines the lived experiences of those born and raised in the shadow of closed steel mills and asks: What about the rest? The answer comes in the form of sculptural works using wood, ceramics, nails, candlesticks, wrought iron and plastic tarpaulins used in construction, as well as paintings depicting the violence caused by economic inertia.

In some ways, the show's curation mimics the imagery of places like Youngstown or Detroit, which are all too often defined by the distant memory of economic prosperity—where images of abandoned houses dominate the visual landscape. This show works in this visual mode, but with added care and intention.

On the floor beneath a painting on one wall is a silver letter opener and a carefully arranged selection of thongs, small heart-shaped resin bowls with nails protruding from the top. A similar object is located above one of the light switches along the other wall. The show rewards the desire to look in unexpected places – the floor, the light switch and the window.

Shaw's namesake flower, datura, also known as moonshine or devil's weed, is a member of the nightshade family. It is a poisonous flower with psychoactive effects that can cause delirium. Indeed, the show has a sense of delirium. One can easily get lost in the works on display, and I would encourage everyone to do so.

Datura On display at Espace Maurice until February 16.