Andrée Anne Vien
Les lieux invisibles
(in situ installations)
From February 5th to May 8th 2008
In selected Montreal restaurants

For dinner reservations go to: www.leslieuxinvisibles.ca
Meals at participants’ own cost.

Large western urban centres such as Montreal foster the illusion of access to all of the world’s cultures; that the world is there handed to us on a plate. “Culinary cosmopolitanism has become touristy, it’s become in.*” The growing popularity of fajitas, kebabs, sushis and other delights, which an “over-eager tourist industry catalogues as authentic experiences, is making it quite difficult to escape today’s culinary globalization*”. Beyond the culinary clichés born of globalization lies Montreal’s rich cultural diversity.
 
Les lieux invisibles will come and go through selected Montreal restaurants. Creator, Andrée Anne Vien portrays cultural diversity from two different angles. On one hand - the discrepancy between immigrant’s perception of their own culture and that particular country’s current cultural references; on the other - visual interpretations of these cultures by means of the artist's own imagination, as well as the movies, and the Internet. Perhaps most importantly though, will be the interviews conducted with foreign nationals, be they owners or clients of participating restaurants. This double-interpretation of overlapping renditions will be presented live in the restaurants. The project also comprises a series of works that combine photo and drawing. A soundtrack presenting statements collected from clients and visitors accompanies these works, prompting additional clients and visitors to formulate their own responses alongside those of the artist.
 
A suggested itinerary through the network of participating restaurants will be put up on the website (www.leslieuxinvisibles.ca). The artist will invite the public to dine with her in each stop-off place, to share a simple meal, an encounter, a collective experience… and check out if culture and knowledge are on the menu. Originally from Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean, Andrée Anne Vien lives and works in Montréal. She has just completed a Masters in Visual and Media Arts at l’Université du Québec à Montréal.
 
*  Grumberg, Amiel. 2004. «Circonvolusions culinaires» Esse. Dossier Nourritures , no 50 (hiver 2004), p. 14-15.

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