S tinman photo Anthony McLean / Frève photo Michel Dubreuil.
a contemporary art gallery be interested in
showing what was (or is still considered)
to be craft?” she explains, pointing out that
galleries and museums show, for instance,
quilts by Barbara Todd and Joyce Wieland.
“Many artists also integrate techniques
or materials that have traditionally been
associated with craft into their work, such
as Cal Lane, who manually cuts out lace
patterns onto existing steel structures, or
Nadia Myre, a Native artist who may use
traditional beading to convey her very
contemporary concerns.”
The ever-expanding cluster of fine craft
galleries in the city also includes Royer
Boutique, Créa Gallery, Opaline Studio,
Centre Materia and Option Art.
In the area of contemporary'jewelry, one
of the exceptional venues is Galerie Noel
Guyomarc’h, opened in 1996, which pro-
motes international work and local talent
such as Barbara Stutman, Josée Desjardins,
Silvie Altschuler and Gabrielle Desmarais.
And one of the most prominent, and
venerable, of spaces is Galerie Elena Lee,
which represents more than 60 artists, both
Above:
At Galerie Noel
Guyomarc’h
Barbara Stutmau,
R oya l C u ff
',
2004, fine
silver, copper wire,
vinyl, glass beads, cro-
cheted, 2
'h
x 3 Vi x 4 Vi in.
Below:
Galerie Elena Lee
interior, showing
primarily glass.
Bottom right:
At Galerie Elena Lee
Carol Frève
W h a t? ,
2008, glass,
copper, 11 ’/: x 13 x 9 in.
Canadian and international, some working
only in glass, others in sundry mixed media.
“When we started out in 1976,” owner
Elena Lee says, “it was pretty much a tabula
rasa, and now we have glass all over the city
in this Year of Glass.” She adds, “I felt priv-
ileged that I was in the right place at the
right time. It was a real struggle, although
the public in Montreal has always been very
receptive. W e support strongly' experimen-
tal work rather than purely commercial-
work that has content and is not just pretty.”
One Elena Lee artist is Carole Freve,
a graduate in 1996 of the three-year glass
program at Espace Verre. Shown regularly
at
s o f a
Chicago and New York, her work
demonstrates a high level of formal inven-
tion, especially her use of copper electro-
plated onto glass surfaces. “What I think
about Montreal is what a craft oasis it is,”
says Freve. “Speaking French, we came up
here without constraints on what we could
do, and by the time we exhibited interna-
tionally, we had already found our own
path. There is an abiding sense of freedom
here. I came to Montreal to study, the low
cost of living allowed me to dedicate myself
to my art and I decided to stay because of
the sense of possibility. Springtime is very'
special here.”
Elaborating on the feelings this city
provokes, Meghan Price says, “To me,
Montreal feels like an island in the middle
of a continent. There is a strong sense of
independence. As a Montrealer, I am part
of a unique, vibrant and complicated culture
that is both marginal and international. This
is a good place to live a creative life.”+
James D. Campbell, a Montreal writer and
independent curator, is the author o f numerous
books, catalogs and magazine articles.
june/julyio american craft 071
www.WorldMags.net & www.Journal-Plaza.net
