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The Winter Garden – 2023 Edition

From February 23 to April 11, 2023, Manif d’art presented the third edition of The Winter Garden! Public art, exhibitions, creative workshops: young and old alike were invited to marvel during this artistic winter break across Québec City.

Taming Our Bestiaries

Curated by Julien St-Georges Tremblay

This edition of The Winter Garden was designed to bring together as many generations as possible around the fantastic elements of the living world. The exhibition was envisioned as a collective imaginary ecosystem, welcoming both real animals and mythical creatures. The “bestiary” was chosen as a theme for its evocation of the familiar, the unsettling, and the wondrous. By “taming” this theme, artists were invited to express the emotions and reactions these creatures inspire.

A Central Exhibition

Espace 400e

March 3 to April 9, 2023

For the first time, Espace 400e hosted a central exhibition for The Winter Garden, featuring a group exhibition by artists from the public art component and a solo exhibition by Québec collective Pierre&Marie.

For 15 years, Pierre&Marie have delighted audiences with a menagerie of fantastical characters, improbable machines, and familiar animals. Their creatures, both strange and unsettling, reflect the paradoxes of excesses in our human society: emojis sink into tar-like oblivion, a heart-shaped character is trapped in a charred forest, velvet eyes watch the public with the softness of a tech corporation. Their dark humor leaves a lasting mark, creating glimmers of childlike wonder that captivate and unsettle.

This ability to evoke both wonder and unease led to the exhibition’s title: Sanctuaries in the Heart of the Blaze, featuring works that evoke subjects to be preserved and protected at all costs.

Activities and Workshops

Every Saturday

ESPACE 400E

Carnival Animal Masks

Artwork: Carnival of the Animals, Bruno Bouchard, Video

Inspired by a cultural mediation project in a Québec school, students created their own colorful carnival animal masks.

Rubber Collage

Artwork: When the Rubber Meets the Road, Gérald Beaulieu, Installation

Inspired by a raven made from car tires, students created their own “creature” using recycled bicycle inner tubes, starting from a silhouette of a bird, fox, or cat.