The Bull and the Rose

Anette Pier

Thursday was a vernissage double-bill: the launch of Anette Pier’s exhibition at Espacio Mexico, and an event at the YMCA in downtown Montreal called Expressin’ Life.

I spent most of the evening at Espacio Mexico, absorbing the dense narrative of Pier’s work. Her show titled The Bull and the Rose draws a parallel between the biblical story of Joseph and the Spanish (and Mexican) tradition of the bull fight. Pier’s paintings are brimming with symbolism: Joseph is the virile bull, the seductive rose, the spiritual fish. The artist was present at the vernissage and gave a half-hour tour of her work, explaining the connections between her Jewish heritage, her biblical studies, and her Mexican heritage.

Anette Pier

Pier’s works are vivid, graphic, embellished. My favourites are the three painted Torero capes which are used to incite the bulls. One of them still had the blood of the last bull fight soaked in its fibres. I’m going to have to brush up on my Old Testament to fully appreciate the symbolism of every piece, but I do think this show is worth a visit.

Anette Pier

Later in the evening I dropped by the downtown Y to check out the show Expressin’ Life. It was organized by the Black Community Resource Centre and showcased the artworks created by 80 teenage girls.

Expressin' Life at the YMCA

The Expressin’ Life programme “uses diverse educational tools to facilitate critical thinking among young adolescent girls. The project encourages the participants to think independently and rely on their own judgement, thereby reduce their likelihood of becoming targets for gangs, drugs, or sexual abuse.” An excellent effort, and a nice evening, though I would have liked to find out more about the individual art pieces on show.

The exhibit at the Y only ran for two days, but you can still catch the show at Espacio Mexico until June 4.

Espacio Mexico
2055 Peel Street
Anette Pier
The Bull and the Rose
April 26 – June 4, 2010