Montrealers can stroll through the Quartier des Spectacles and see the streets transform with digital art after dark. From August 14 to 28, the second edition of Village Numérique offers a free nighttime circuit of 28 installations on 23 different sites for everyone to enjoy.
“From XR, AR to simple sculpture, light sculptures, video mappings as well. So the goal was to offer to the public a very large range of possibilities, actually,” said Mikaël Frascadore, executive producer for the Village Numérique.
Visitors can explore the universe of Opal, a live experience at the crossroads of space and underwater brought by the Montreal-based multimedia creative studio Gentilhomme.
“Opal is an interactive installation where users can explore a sensory world, a very organic world with a light torch. It’s also interactive in sounds, so as you discover new pieces […] you will hear the sound that goes with it,” said Camille Jeuniaux, Director of Business Development of Gentilhomme.
“Opal is actually part of a broader catalog that we are recently creating. Gentilhomme has always been active in custom art pieces installations, and now we are more and more into developing our own installations, such as Opal,” added Jeuniaux.
Jeanne Dompierre, the executive director of Xn Québec, added, “We really have like a big variety of projects, and some are more suited for arts aficionados, and some are very good for families and children just wanting to have fun. So, doing the whole village, you get a little bit of something for everyone.”
Montreal artist Martin Messier presented Astronomical Water, a work combining dripping water and lights to create rhythmic patterns and visual effects, reflecting his background as a drummer.
“I could be proud of the idea, I could be proud of the concept, but sincerely, I’m just proud about the fact that I can deliver this piece today, because there have been a lot of challenges concerning techniques. There is no water on the floor; everything is kept in their reservoir, so it’s really an engineering work in a lot of ways,” said Messier during a press tour on Wednesday.
The entire circuit is estimated to take about three hours and can be explored on foot and over multiple visits.
Village Numérique runs from 6 to 11 p.m. and is presented by Xn Québec and the MUTEK Festival —giving everyone a chance to enjoy music and art in the heart of Montreal.
