Traces – First waterways – Until October 9, outside Château Ramezay

Traces – First waterways

For the ninth edition of Métis-sur-Montréal, artist William Vazan channels the multiple streams that wound through the island of Montreal before the arrival of Europeans in an installation inspired by garden mazes, presented at Place De La Dauversière. Free.

Château Ramezay – Museum and Historical Site of Montréal and Jardins de Métis present Traces – First Waterways in the ninth edition of Métis-sur-Montréal. Artist William Vazan invites you to follow the path of the First Peoples along lost waterways in an installation presented at Place De La Dauversière, through October 9, 2017.

Traces – First Waterways, inspired by garden mazes, channels the multiple streams that wound through the island of Montreal before the arrival of Europeans. These rivulets, long since erased from the landscape by urbanization, infrastructure, and drought, are etched into the grass of Place De La Dauversière. The artist hopes to inspire those who experience the piece to ponder, “what the pre-colonial territory looked like when the Amerindians crossed the island of Montreal by river on a web of waterways.” Visitors to this installation at the heart of historic Old Montreal are encouraged to meander these paths that once flowed from the island.

William Vazan is a Canadian artist who has lived and worked in Montreal since 1957. He is internationally renowned for his “land art” practice, and distinguishes himself by working directly onsite, in nature, parks, and public spaces. Vazan is a canonical figure in Quebec’s conceptual art scene; his large-scale projects focus on expressing memories of places and the marks humans have left behind.

Place De La Dauversière, located between Château Ramezay and Place Jacques-Cartier, in front of Montreal City Hall.

For more information visit: www.chateauramezay.qc.ca