Second edition of Music Video
July 11 to September 30, 2007

Montréal, July 4, 2007. “Music video is like highlights in relief, like sculpting in time. The secret to a movie’s success is its rhythm,” says video director Mark Romanek. And so we invite you to come and experience highlights in relief, sculpted time, rhythm, and more. From July 11 to September 30, 2007, the Musée d’art contemporain presents Music Video, screened as part of the museum’s Projections series.

2007 edition

On the program, a selection of 22 titles, reflecting every trend and style: 14 of them produced in the last five years, and 7 made in 2006 alone. They are presented in chronological order, and the total running time is about 1 1/2 hours. A few clips from the eighties and nineties give a certain historical perspective. The program opens with huge David Bowie hit from 1980, Ashes to Ashes, directed by David Mallet and David Bowie. Also included are works by Gemma Burditt, Martin de Thurah, Aleksandra Domanovic, Warren Edmond, Grant Gee, Michel Gondry, Jean-Paul Goude, Joan Guasch, Stuart Warren-Hill, Garth Jennings, Spike Jonze, Gary Koepke, Shynola, StyleWar, Tarsem and Jamie Thraves.

The Montréal scene is represented by James Di Salvio now based in California, with his 1991 video for Jean Leloup’s Isabelle; the Fluorescent Hill collective, with I Get Lost (2005) by Motion Soundtrack; Louis-Philippe Éno, with Au gré des saisons (2006) by Dumas; and Dave Pawsey, whose Bridge to Nowhere (2006) by Sam Roberts, made with visual effects supervisor Jonathan Legris, won the 2007 Juno Award for Video of the Year and the MuchMusic Video Award for Best Post-Production.

Music Video is the coming together of outstanding creative talents—singers and other musicians, and video creators and directors. In the words of Louise Ismert, who organized the program, “Beyond having the right idea, beyond finding a balance between concept and treatment, between image and music, the success of a video depends on the quality of the energy it sustains from start to finish.” And that energy, she adds, often stems from the relationship between the director and the artist. Spike Jonze is quite categorical about it: “I felt like the videos that always came out the best were the ones for the artists that I loved.”

Plug into that energy at the Musée d’art contemporain, until September 30.

Music Video program

Working between music and film, television and advertising, music video directors have come up with new ways of making films, and expanded the visual arts field as a whole. In embarking on the presentation of Music Video, the museum wants to illustrate the creative energy displayed in the music video sector, spotlight these highly inventive artists and showcase their works in a contemporary art context.

The Musée d’art contemporain is located at 185 Sainte-Catherine Street West, Place-des-Arts metro. Summer hours, until September 3 inclusive: Monday through Sunday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; open late, till 9 p.m., every Wednesday as well as on Friday, July 6 and Friday, August 3. Admission: Adults: $8, or $10 with the Wired to the MAC card that offers unlimited admission to the Musée for one year, including the Friday Nocturnes.  Information: (514) 847-6226. Website: www.macm.org.

The Musée d'art contemporain is a provincially owned corporation funded by the Ministère de la Culture, des Communications et de la Condition fémininedu Québec. It receives additional funding from the Department of Canadian Heritage and the Canada Council for the Arts.

-30-

Source and information:                                           
Danielle Legentil                                                       
Media Relations Officer                                            
Tel.: (514) 847-6232                                                 
E-mail: danielle.legentil@macm.org