Coming up: Keep an eye on the Facebook event for details on the Surprise Programming in Milwaukee connection.
Schedule:
Wednesday to Sunday from 11 AM to 7 PM
Entrance:
315, Saint-Paul West
Montreal (Quebec)
H2Y 2M3
Taking place this spring for its third and final season: an installation of international collaboration between cultural curators encouraging reflection.
The PHI_portal is an immersive public art installation and long-term participatory initiative (from July 2020 to June 2021) that brings the Montreal public face-to-face with communities from 50 cities across time and space – from Berlin, Milwaukee, Bamako to Gaza. In partnership with Shared_Studios, The PHI_portal is embedded in a network of varying geopolitical realities that facilitate the emergence of a third space.
Through immersive live-stream technology, the experience of entering the PHI_portal is akin to sharing the same physical space as someone on the mirrored side of the screen engaging the entire body and corporal language. It is now, more than ever, the medium for them to transcend borders while taking part in powerful artistic encounters, critical cultural exchange and cross border workshops. Spring 2021 unveils the third and final season of the PHI_portal between the cities of Montreal, Milwaukee and Kigali. This season involves personal encounters, workshops, musical performances and more.
Web Series
Although PHI was forced to close its doors to the public due to health measures last fall, the PHI_portal remained very active. The Artists are Present series of interviews showcases the connections in the PHI_portal while exploring the approach and initiatives of local talents seeking sustainable artistic development in their communities. Directly linked to the activities taking place in the PHI_portal, these artists advocate for greater involvement and innovation in their respective spheres.
Check out all the video interviews in our series playlist. New video content will be available to watch in June.
Video installation | Available online
In collaboration with Shared_Studios, we invited the curators of the 18 portals located around the world to collaborate during the first wave of COVID-19 in a collective short film. Discovering their documented environments with all available digital cameras, we are invited to go to the other side of the portal through personal testimonials and performances.
IN JUNE, MONTREAL x KIGALI
A (LOVE) LETTER TO YOU - LETTERS TO A STRANGER
Workshops and discussions
Every Saturday from 10:30 AM
Stories, powerful gateways for understanding the experiences of others. Led by Dr. Sonia Cancian, A (Love) Letter to You - Letters.to.a.Stranger explores narratives of human intimacy and presence composed in handwritten and email correspondence in an era dominated by social media, virtual worlds, and isolation.
When was the last time you sealed a reflection in a letter? What if, we harnessed time for a moment, and took our favourite ink and paper to write a (love) letter—a letter that gives voice to the stories of our freedoms, our joys, and our fears. What stories would we tell?
*Participants are encouraged to confide/tell an experience, a reflection, story, a dream, a wish to an unknown correspondent (a stranger) by dropping one off in person at PHI Centre Reception, or by sending a scanned, photographed, hand-written or typed letter to [email protected]. Participants may choose to submit a letter anonymously; we will preserve your anonymity.
Guest Activator: Dr. Sonia Cancian, PhD
GLOBAL RELATION WORLD WIDE WEB
Musical exchanges
Every Thursday from 12 PM
Curated by Gayance (alias Aïsha Vertus), Global Relation World Wide Web is a series of musical exchanges whose goal is to connect the African diaspora of DJ, singer-songwriters to the booming Kigali music scene.
Gayance is a creole word for joyfulness. Since Aïsha Vertus is always unapologetic, it was the perfect name for her musical project that would also celebrate her Haitian roots. Born and raised in Montreal, the DJ with eclectic musical tastes has been tearing down venues in Paris, Amsterdam, Brooklyn, Marrakech, Berlin and more. She made her debut at n10as, The Lot Radio, Kiosk Radio, Rinse FM France and Radio-Canada.
Guest Curator: Gayance
Guests: Gayance (June 3), KARABA (June 10), Nicole Musoni (June 17), Janette King (June 23).
AFROVYBZ WITH LOIC REYEL
Workshops and discussions
Every Friday from 12 PM
Join Montreal-based choreographer and dancer Loïc Reyel at the PHI_portal every Friday in June as he and special guests connect with the Kigali to exchange on the rhythms and moves of the global afrobeats dance movement and its impact on pop culture.
Loïc Reyel is an incomparable afro dancer and founder of Afrovybz Canada who definetly has more than one trick up his sleeve. Born Nguemle Loïc Sipeyou, this young Camerounian artist blends his love and passion for afro rythms and his creativity to animate people around the world. His unique music genre ranges from Bikutsi from Cameroon to coupé décalé from Ivory Coast, travelling to Nigeria with Afrobeat and many more. He is a versatile dancer that has a lot to bring and offer.
Guest Curator: Loïc Reyel
ETERNAL FLOWER, BETTINA SZABO
Artistic performance
On Tuesday June 15 from 10:30 AM
Based on a series of global interviews facilitated through the PHI_portal, dancer and choreographer Bettina Szabo will share a solo performance which uses symptoms, emotions and symbolism related to menopause as source movement. Szabo has created an ephemeral paper dress that serves as a frame for movement rooted in the overpowering emotions and physical sensations lived through this important phase in women's lives.
Guest Activator: Bettina Szabo
SURPRISE CONCERT FROM KIGALI
Musical performance
Saturday June 5 starting at 12 PM
Discover the sounds of Kigali on Saturday June 5 at the PHI Centre. Join us for an intimate concert, streaming live from the PHI_portal, showcasing local musicians. This connection will transport us into performances and dialogues that root themselves in the cultural specificities of Kigali.
IN MAY, MONTREAL x MILWAUKEE
TO MY YOUNGER SELF: A GUIDE TO BETTER LIVING
Workshops and discussions
Every Wednesday from 3 PM to 4:30 PM
During our formative years, there are a handful pivotal moments that shape our views of the world and the parts that we play in it. Those moments, more often than not, can set us on a path filled with distractions, suppressed trauma and cause us to disconnect from the Men we were truly meant to be.
This four-part portal experience, presented by La Rue Inspire and curated by Travis Gellizeau, is geared towards the young men growing up in our communities. The goal is to provide them with the tools to inspire, reconnect and rediscover themselves through the activations and testimonials from guest experts.
Guest Curator: Travis Gellizeau
Guests: Miro LaFlaga; Ash Phillips; Sétiz Taheri; Rama Sow; Brandon Dawson-Jarvis
KNOWLEDGE XCHANGE
Creative Workshops and Performances
Friday May 28 from 6 PM to 8 PM
Led by NoBad Sound Studio (NBS), this two-part portal series featuring sound clashes and workshops led by NBS Studio artists and mentors. Each sound clash showcases NBS performers, who exchange verses back and forth with an artist on the other side of the portal. Using NBS’ current for-youth, by-youth model, the workshops and conversations will teach hands-on, practical skills—how to record vocals, how to make beats, how to style and arrange songs—while sharing ideas on empowering independent young artists with limited resources.
Guest Curator: Jai Nitai Lotus
Performances by: Kamino, Melodix, Kazzu, Kaytesla, Skiifall
Creative workshops with: Jai Nitai Lotus, Sam, SG2B, YAMA//SATO, Jon Pierre-Louis
SURPRISE PROGRAMMING FROM MILWAUKEE
Special activities
On Saturday May 22 and 29 from 4 PM to 5:30 PM
Throughout the month of May, Milwaukee_portal curator Lewis Lee will introduce Montreal audiences to his city’s creative community by welcoming surprise guests from the worlds of music, poetry, and dance into the PHI_portal. Each connection will transport us into performances and dialogues that root themselves in the cultural specificities of Milwaukee. Enter the PHI_portal each Saturday to find yourself face to face with Milwaukee’s finest.
Curator in Milwaukee: Lewis Lee
IN APRIL, MONTREAL x BAMAKO
SITUATED INTELLIGENCE WITH KABAKOO ACADEMIES
Workshops and discussions
Guest Curator: Lucas LaRochelle
Guests: Moisés Horta Valenzuela, Anastasia Davydova-Lewis, Xuan Ye
WELL(BEING) WITH THE VILLIJ
Workshops and discussions
Guest Curator: Kim Knight, The Villij
Invités: Yoyo Michele, Rebecca Manankil, Kim Knight
INCOMING BAMAKO CONCERTS
Musical performances
Guests: Mariam Sangaré, Nfaly Diakité, Sahel Roots et Tamala Mali
MOONSHINE RADIO SHOW x MEXICO
Radio show
Behind the scenes: Partout au Bled, a show recorded in the PHI_portal
LIVE ARTS
Montreal x Erbil | Berlin
Performance and artistic encounter
Commissioned by Yves Sheriff, the given connexions bring together local and international artists of all ages. They explore the physical relationship with others through unexpected encounters. Using each their own language, guests meander through their artistic practice to nourish a reflection on as many questions as the intimacy within the distance, the very essence of the performance, the role of the performer as well as his relationship with the public.
Guests: Adam Kinner, saxophonist and performance artist; François Blouin, theatre director, filmmaker and performer. Leonard Roy, child prodigy of acrobatics and juggling.
PER(FORMING) DIGITAL INTIMACIES
Montreal x Mexico | Ede | Berlin
Experimental performance
Within the four walls of the portal, two strangers are guided by a coded algorithm to generate action-reaction choreographies between participants. This series examines the possibilities of human intimacy through the intervention of technology and code. Personal anecdotal gestures are transformed into choreographies between a human- human- machine interaction.
Guest: Andrea Peña, choreographer.
NO BAD SOUND STUDIO
Montreal x Mexico
Listening sessions
Throughout fall 2020, emerging musical artists were be paired across distance for a performative exchange in the portal. Sharing experiences and feedback as artists were at the heart of these connections, providing them with inspiration and motivation to sharpen their talents and pursue their musical career.
Guests: XLoww, music producer and singer/songwriter; Montrealways, R&B artist.
SITUATED INTELLIGENCE
Montreal x Bamako
Workshops and discussions
PHI opened a dialogue at the intersection of artificial intelligence, artistic production and ethics through hands-on technical workshops and critical conversations. Local and international technologists, critics and emerging artists were invited to present their approach to students from Kabakoo Academies in Bamako.
Guests: Moises Horta Valenzuela, electronic musician and creative technologist; Suzanne Kite, performance artist, visual artist, and composer; Rouzbeh Shadpey, sound and transdisciplinary artist.
CUÑA
Montreal x Berlin | Herat
Research Creation by Bettina Szabo
Cuña is a contemporary dance project combining dance, video-mapping and live music. The central theme of the work is internalized misogyny: sexist behaviours and attitudes enacted by women toward themselves or other women.
Guest: Bettina Szabo, director, choreographer and dancer.
CULTIVATING CARE
Montreal (Tio’tia: ke) x Mooniyang | Milwaukee
Workshops and discussions
First presented in November 2020, Cultivating Care is a series lead by Nènè Myriam Konaté of cross-border exchanges through which artists, arts administrators, and cultural practitioners are invited to partake in intimate conversations that lie at the intersection of art and community organizing.
PROGRAMMING (SEASON 1: JULY 23 TO SEPT. 30)
(BE)LONGING
Montreal x Bamako | Kigali
Discussions on contemporary diasporas
Presented by The Clap Back and the PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art, (Be)Longing is a series of international conversations. You are invited to participate in these intimate exchanges around modern diasporas, exploring the multiple ways in which displacement and identity shape our understandings of language, proximity and (in)visibility.
AP&A X SERGIO
Montreal x Berlin
Choreographic workshop
Through a combination of two of AP&A's creations (Andrea Peña), an interactive experience comes to life through the portal. It will focus on the creation of a choreographic system to guide the interactions and improvisations of two people who connect through the portal. The encounters are guided by dancers/performers from AP&A in Montreal, and can be experienced either with other dancers in Berlin or with members of the public.
BLACK ON BOTH SIDES: Cultural Exchange with Rito Joseph
Montreal x Milwaukee
Workshops and discussions
Based around knowledge sharing, Rito Joseph facilitates a series of connections about the history of Black Canadians in Montreal. It will allow him the liberty of inviting certain artists.
NO BAD SOUND STUDIO
Montreal x Milwaukee
Listening session
After a first exchange on July 23rd 2020 with producer and songwriter Kamino, Montreal’s NBS Studio listening sessions continued in August.
WORK IN PROGRESS
Montreal x Milwaukee
Public reading
Lewis Lee, music producer and curator of the Milwaukee portal, is an advocate for social justice. Reading chapters from his memoir Lewis & Laverne in 20- to 30-minute sessions, he invites the public to an intimate one on one connection followed by a 15-minute discussion.
Nènè Myriam Konaté is a transdiciplinary artist, founder of The Clap Back, a dialogue-based space that facilitates the emergence of transdisciplinary experiences and a co-founder of Collective Culture, a platform highlighting the voices of Black, Indigenous and People of Colour. As a curator participating in the programming of the portal, they will facilitate fruitful exchanges between communities through art.
