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Officially launched two months ago, the PHI MONTREAL residency is now ready to move on to its next phase: the presentation of the inspiring works created by the selected residents!

Starting September 22 at the PHI Foundation, the group exhibition features works produced by the five participants of this edition, kimura byol-nathalie lemoine, Salima Punjani, Dominique Sirois, Santiago Tamayo Soler, and Karen Trask. Their projects were created in response to a theme inspired by science fiction author Ursula K. Le Guin.

Explore the group exhibition … and room in the bag of stars, featuring multiple formal and conceptual approaches by the artists of the PHI MONTREAL residency.

> kimura byol-nathalie lemoine
(ze/zer)

kimura byol-nathalie lemoine is a conceptual multimedia feminist artist and curator who questions binanries and perceptions of identities—diaspora, ethnicity, colorism, post-colonialism, immigration, gender—through calligraphy, painting, poetry, digital and video, and collaborative practice.

> Dominique Sirois
(she/her)

Dominique Sirois' artistic practice takes the form of multidisciplinary installations, playing with materializations of exhibition devices through ceramics and printed images. Sirois deploys narrative devices throughout her installations using economic, archaeological, mythological, technological, and mineralogical references.

> Karen Trask
(she/her)

Karen Trask is known for her explorations of language and innovative use of paper, whose works include installations, artist-books, videos, and performances. Trask’s multimedia work has been exhibited in Quebec, Canada, Europe, Mexico, and Japan.

Deadline to apply 
May 16, 2021

PHI Residencies - MONTREAL program (60 days)
→ Call for proposals: April 27 to May 16, 2021
→ Two voluntary Q&A online sessions (30 minutes) via Zoom: May 12, 2021 at 10 AM and 4 PM
→ Public announcement of the 5 selected artists: July 2021
→ Residency: from July 1st to August 30, 2021
→ Exhibition: from mid-September 2021 to January 2022

Contact
For more informations, please contact [email protected]

Artists are asked to submit a proposal for an art project based on the following curatorial prompt: still there are seeds to be gathered, and room in the bag of stars.

In The Carrier-Bag Theory of Fiction, author Ursula K. Le Guin offers another understanding of the power of storytelling. Throughout the essay, she envisions stories as bags: tools to sustain and provide for ourselves and our communities; opportunities to carry and to bring together; essential repositories for our survival. Through a critical reading of the past and present, she argues for a decentering of our society's obsession with the heroic, the canonical and the singular. Instead, she invites all of us to imagine future gatherings that honour the vastness and value of our humble, everyday gestures.

With these reflections in mind, how can art allow us to imagine spaces, temporalities, conditions, or systems where we can all get together, again? To borrow another of Le Guin’s turns of phrase, what kinds of “strange realisms” might mirror this “strange reality”? PHI MONTREAL invites artists to imagine other modes of gathering for survival.

PHI MONTREAL is an annual production residency that offers 5 artists based in the Greater Montreal area the opportunity to make new work that responds to a curatorial theme based on current questions, ideas, and issues. Works produced during the residency will be presented in a group exhibition at the PHI Foundation.

Artists across all disciplines are welcome to submit a proposal, while bearing in mind the residency's objective is to produce an artwork — installation, visual art, sculptural, media, or otherwise — which will be exhibited at the PHI Foundation in September 2021.

Residency PHI — MONTREAL, an annual production residency

At PHI, we value the role of art and culture in our everyday lives. The purpose of PHI MONTREAL is to nurture a relationship between artists, curators and visitors by inviting them to investigate the pressing issues of our time through the production and presentation of artworks. This residency explores art making and presentation through the concept of the ecosystem, a community-building network that relies on interaction and interconnectivity for its health and wellbeing.

Selected artists participating in PHI MONTREAL Residency will receive:

• Individual artists will receive 2,000$ CAD as an artist fee and up to 4,000$ CAD for production expenses;
• Personalized support from the PHI Team over the course of the residency period:
  • curatorial support;
  • creative direction;
  • technical support;
  • production support.
• Access to the following PHI Studio facilities: PHI’s sound recording and editing studio and sound engineer; access to PHI offices and administrative spaces.
• Promotional support of the artist and the final presentation across PHI networks;
• Public exhibition of the final artworks at the PHI Foundation, including installation support;
• Access to PHI’s vast network of collaborators;
• Production of a short video profile on each artist for promotional purposes;
• Cost of transport, insurance, and installation of the final artwork during its presentation.

Submit your application by May 16, 2021 before 11:59 PM by completing this form. Applicants will be asked to provide the following information:

• Artist biography; 
• Contact information; 
• Description of proposed project (max. 500 words);
• Production plan for the proposed project, including:
  • A detailed calendar listing each stage of production;
  • A detailed budget outlining creation, production, and other expenses;
  • A list of relevant suppliers and/or vendors.
• Documentation of previous work (up to 5 maximum; web links to existing images, video, or other documentation are accepted).

Applications can be completed in French or English. Incomplete applications or applications that do not meet the eligibility requirements will not be considered.

An acknowledgement message will appear once once the registration form has been completed. Selected applicants will be contacted in June 2021.

The selection will be undertaken by a committee composed of PHI staff and invited external professionals who reflect a diverse set of expertise and perspectives as well as represent intersectional diversity.

Applications will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• Conceptual and formal rigor of the proposed art project and its resonance with the proposed curatorial theme (35%);
• Feasibility of the production of the artwork within the given timeframe as well as the technical and budgetary practicality of the proposed project (35%);
• Quality of past work and overall application (30%).

PHI is committed to equity in all its forms.

Daniel Fiset, PHI MONTREAL Curator, PHI Foundation
George Fok, Creative Director, PHI Studio
Dayna McLeod, Artist
Nico Williams, Artist
Cheryl Sim, Managing Director and Curator, PHI Foundation
Marika Shaw, PHI Senior Advisor and Residencies Co-Director

Health and safety: COVID-19

Throughout the residency and public presentation period, the PHI Team will carefully follow the health protocols recommended by Quebec Public Health authorities to ensure the safety of all participants and support staff.