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100 Miles Around

September 9th to December 12th, 2015

Artist

Mere Phantoms (Jaimie Robson & Maya Ersan)

Opening Reception

Wednesday, September 9, 5 to 7 pm.

Curator

Karine Di Genova

Overview

As part of the Carte blanche exhibition series, the collective Mere Phantoms has created an immersive visitor experience including light, shadow play and performance. During a residency in the spring of 2015 at Sherbrooke’s Alexander Galt Regional High School, artists Maya Ersan and Jaimie Robson shared their creative process and techniques with Secondary V students. Their goal was to invite the students to develop an installation that would initially be shown at the school library, and then to expand the installation into an in situ immersive experience, to be presented at the Foreman Art Gallery. Mere Phantoms put the finishing touches on the work by adding their own creations, as well as elements reflecting their impressions of the region.

The result was an installation consisting of delicate 3D paper cut-outs created by Mere Phantoms and the students, evoking rural, urban and fantastical environments. Visitors are invited to bring the work to life by casting shadows on the walls with flashlights. Through this shadow play, which follows the rhythm of the sound environment, visitors participate in the work as both artists and performers.

Artists

Founded in 2008, the Montreal-based collective Mere Phantoms develops immersive installations combining delicate, intricate paper cut-outs, drawings, video projections and interactive performances. Taking their inspiration from shadow play, early films and animation, artists Maya Ersan and Jaimie Robson explore the interaction between spectacle and experience. Their installations have been presented in Canada and abroad, notably at the events One Architecture Week in Plovdiv (Bulgaria, 2015) and the UNESCO City of Design: Montréal Meets Graz (Austria, 2015), as well as at the Brandts Museum (Denmark, 2014), the Istanbul Biennial (Turkey, 2013), the Real to Reel Film Festival in Vancouver (2013) and the McCord Museum in Montreal during the Nuit Blanche festival (2013). The artistic duo have a keen interest in education and regularly give workshops in schools and museums, in addition to completing artist residencies in educational settings.