THE MONTREAL MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS OPEN EVERY DAY THIS SUMMER

Montreal, June 18, 2018 – Over the summer, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA) will be open every day, including Monday, from June 25 to September 3, 2018. The new summer schedule offers many opportunities for cultural immersion with a program that is every bit as refreshing as it is thought-provoking. Incidentally, access to the Museum is free at all times for children aged 12 and under, accompanied by an adult, as is access to the collections and discovery exhibitions for visitors aged 30 and under. Enjoy half-price admission Wednesdays from 5 to 9 p.m. to explore the exhibitions From Africa to the Americas: Face-to-Face Picasso, Past and Present and Here We Are Here: Black Canadian Contemporary Art. The summer is set to sizzle with must-see exhibitions :

FROM AFRICA TO THE AMERICAS FACE-TO-FACE PICASSO, PAST AND PRESENT Until September 16, 2018 This major exhibition looks at the transformation in our view of the arts of Africa, Oceania and the Americas from the end of the 19th century to the present day. Following milestones in the life of Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) and in history, the exhibition explores the close relationship between the Spanish master and these arts, focusing on the history of attitudes. Throughout the show, works by contemporary artists of African descent provide a counterpoint, increasing the points of view on the international history of art that requires rethinking. An exhibition developed by the Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, in partnership with the Musée national Picasso-Paris, adapted by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

• The exhibition takes a fresh look at the history of art and questions preconceived ideas.

• It includes more than 300 works and documents primarily from the Musée du quai Branly – Jacques

Chirac and the Musée national Picasso-Paris.

• It features some 100 works by Picasso, including 30 or so that are being shown for the first time in Canada.

• Numerous works by anonymous artists, dating from the nineteenth and early-twentieth century, reveal

the artistic riches of Africa, the Americas and Oceania.

• Some 20 contemporary artists from Africa or with African roots explore the postcolonial heritage, including Edson Chagas, Omar Victor Diop, Samuel Fosso, Romuald Hazoumè, Zanele Muholi, Mickalene Thomas and Kehinde Wiley.

• A youth area featuring an installation created by The Woman Power collective and an exhibition conceived by students from the Commission scolaire de Montréal (CSDM), in collaboration with Youth Fusion.

HERE WE ARE HERE: BLACK CANADIAN CONTEMPORARY ART Until September 16, 2018 Developed by the Royal Ontario Museum, this exhibition challenges preconceived notions of Blackness in Canada through the work of 11 Canadian contemporary artists. These works serve as a window on their reality and blur the longstanding perception that Black bodies belong on the edge of Canadian history. In presenting multiple voices and sensitivities, this exhibition disrupts simplistic and comforting narratives, while affirming the longstanding relevance of Black people to the fabric of Canada.

• The multidisciplinary exhibition features works by 11 contemporary Canadian artists (Sandra Brewster,

Sylvia D. Hamilton, Chantal Gibson, Bushra Junaid, Charmaine Lurch, Esmaa Mohamoud, Michèle Pearson Clarke and Gordon Shadrach), including three Montrealers (Eddy Firmin dit Ano, Manuel Mathieu and Shanna Strauss).

• It examines the complexity of art and questions of race and identity in Canada.

• An invitation to reflect on the history and the place of African Canadians in our society.

JEAN MICHEL OTHONIEL MOTION – EMOTION June 20 – November 11, 2018 For his first solo exhibition in Canada, the French artist Jean-Michel Othoniel is presenting a series of recent works on the theme of storms and the violence of the elements. His Tornadoes in chromed aluminum or mirror-polished stainless steel are suspended in space like mobiles, surrounding those who approach them. The monochromatic nature of the works speaks to the Othoniel’s environmental concerns, imbuing them with a darker mood. The artist’s sensitivity to the realities of the natural world can also be seen in his

black ink paintings. An exhibition organized by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, in collaboration with Jean-Michel Othoniel and Perrotin gallery.

• First solo exhibition in Canada by world-renowned French artist Jean-Michel Othoniel.

• The exhibition presents five monumental sculptures. including four that are mobile, as well as paintings

executed in black ink on gold leaf

• Since 2016, the Museum’s visitors have been able to enjoy the Peony Knot, a sculpture composed of 212 beads of mirrored blown glass and stainless steel, on permanent display in the event stairway of the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace.

• Othoniel’s work has been presented in world’s leading museums. In 2011, the Centre Pompidou in Paris presented a retrospective that subsequently travelled to Seoul, Tokyo and Brooklyn. Othoniel is the first artist to create a permanent work for the gardens at the Château de Versailles, with his fountain sculptures.

MOVING DUNES IN THE MMFA SCULPTURE GARDEN Until October 29, 2018

For the seventh consecutive year, the Museum has transformed Du Musée Avenue into a pedestrian zone with Moving Dunes, created by NÓS Architectes and produced in collaboration with MU. This new open-air installation, made possible with the generous support of the Ville de Montréal – Ville-Marie Borough, transports visitors into an off-kilter abstract geometric landscape. All along the installation, the spheres reflect the Museum’s various pavilions, each with their unique architecture and history. With this clever illusion, NÓS calls into question the singular point of view of modern pictures, often frozen in time and generic. In this installation, real and virtual come face to face, intermingle and awaken the senses. Moving Dunes is meant to be a mirage in the heart of Montreal. This pedestrian zone bordering the MMFA’s Sculpture Garden will be the site of several events throughout the summer.

• An ephemeral work created by NÓS Architectes and produced in collaboration with MU.

• An outdoor installation that transforms du Musée Avenue into a pedestrian zone for the summer.

• The installation is bordered by sculptures by Charles Joseph, Jim Dine, Joe Fafard, Henry Moore, Jaume

Plensa, Jean-Paul Riopelle, among others, which comprise the Museum’s Sculpture Garden.

FROM THE HANDS OF THE MASTERS II: FROM PARMIGIANINO TO MATISSE Until August 12, 2018 Second part of the 2013 presentation, this exhibition features 55 drawings from the sixteenth to the twentieth century from a Montreal private collector. It brings together works on paper by such remarkable artists as François Boucher, Augustin and Annibal Carrache, Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione, Gustave Courbet, Edgar Degas, Juan Gris, Katsushika Hokusai, Victor Hugo, Henri Matisse, Jean-François Millet, Amadeo Modigliani, Gustave Moreau, Berthe Morisot, Parmesan, Camille Pissarro, Giorgio Vasari, James McNeill Whistler and Antoine Watteau, as well as works by Delacroix, Greuze, Ingres and Romney, recently donated to the Museum by the anonymous collector.

• An opportunity to take a closer look at nearly 55 masterpieces by such artists as Courbet, Delacroix,

Ingres and Matisse, from the largest collection in the country.

• A remarkable collection of charcoals and sanguines, washes and watercolours from the Renaissance to today.

• A variety of subjects ranging from female nudes to landscapes and still lifes.

MNEMOSYNE WHEN CONTEMPORARY ART AND THE ART OF THE PAST MEET Until August 5, 2018 This presentation provides a way to make unexpected connections between the works on display in the new Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace and the installations, sculptures, paintings and photographs by 14 contemporary artists from Quebec and Canada: Edmund Alleyn, Rebecca Belmore, Catherine Bolduc, Dan Brault, Jack Chambers, Pierre Dorion, Karel Funk, Manon Labrecque, Mathieu Lefèvre, Karine Payette, Michael Snow, Marion Wagschal, Kim Waldon and the collective N.E. Thing Co. Each work presented in the Jean-Noël Desmarais Pavilion is freely associated with a painting in the Museum’s international art collection, by such artists as Pieter Bruegel the Younger, Salvador Dalí, Sigmund Holbein and Claude Monet.

• An exhibition that establishes a dialogue between modern and ancient European art and the work of 14 contemporary artists from Quebec and Canada.

• The free association is based on the approach of the German art historian Aby Warburg (1866-1929) in his Mnemosyne Atlas.

• The exhibition features two recent acquisitions by the MMFA: Lingering in Time’s House (Vanitas)

(2016) by Dan Brault and Mixed Blessing (2011) by Rebecca Belmore.

BON APPÉTIT! CONTEMPORARY FOODWARE DESIGNS IN QUEBEC Until March 2019

The MMFA celebrates the culinary arts and homegrown creativity with the presentation of some fifty objects designed by Quebec creators. Exhibited in the Design Lab for contemporary design and decorative arts, the exhibition Bon appétit! Contemporary Foodware Designs in Quebec brings together the accoutrements of welcoming people to the table — the tools and equipment used for preparing, cooking and storing food — industrial and handcrafted objects that are always attractive.

• From cooking utensils to serving platters: a selection of intelligently designed objects made by 42 local designers.

• An exhibition that celebrates the art of the table and Quebec creativity.

• It presents design objects that have won awards both in Quebec and internationally. Among them, The Knife Reinvented by Chifen Cheng for Maison Milan, the Denise eau Serving and Storage Dish by Jarre (Élyse Leclerc and Gabrielle Falardeau), and the Perfect Mix Press and Measure Oil and Vinegar Dispenser, created by Benoit Orban (ALTO DESIGN) for Trudeau.

Acknowledgements The exhibitions From Africa to the Americas: Face-to-Face Picasso, Past and Present and Here We Are Here: Black Canadian Contemporary Art was made possible thanks to the generous support of Stéphan Crétier and Stéphany Maillery, in collaboration with Tourisme Montréal. The educational area of this exhibition benefitted from the valuable patronage of Desjardins. The Museum acknowledges the vital contribution of Air Canada, the Angel Circle of the MMFA and its media partners: Bell, La Presse+ and the Montreal Gazette. From Africa to the Americas: Face-to-Face Picasso, Past and Present also received the support of the Department of Canadian Heritage through its Canada Travelling Exhibitions Indemnification Program. The Museum’s International Exhibition Programme receives financial support from the Exhibition Fund of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts Foundation and the Paul G. Desmarais Fund. The installation Moving Dunes was made possible thanks to the generous support of the Ville de Montréal – Ville-Marie Borough. The Museum would also like the MMFA’s Young Philanthropists’ Circle, which is proud to support the Museum’s contemporary art program. The Museum acknowledges the essential contribution of Air Canada, official carrier of the MMFA, and extends its thanks to Quebec’s Ministère de la Culture et des Communications for its vital support as well as to the Conseil des arts de Montréal and the Canada Council for the Arts for their ongoing support. Images: (from top to bottom, left to right) Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Large Still Life with Pedestal Table, Paris, March 11, 1931, oil on canvas. Musée national Picasso-Paris, gift in lieu Pablo Picasso, 1979. © Estate of Picasso / SODRAC (2018). Photo © RMN-Grand Palais / Art Resource, NY / René-Gabriel Ojéda | Esmaa Mohamoud, Untitled (No Fields), 2018, ink-jet print. Courtesy of Georgia Scherman Projects and the artist. | Jean-Michel Othoniel (born in 1964), Black Tornado, 2017, aluminum, steel. Courtesy of Perrotin gallery © Jean-Michel Othoniel / SODRAC (2018). Photo Claire Dorn | NÓS Architectes, Moving Dunes, 2018, truncated mirror polished steel spheres, acrylic paint. Produced in collaboration with MU.| Gustave Moreau (1826-1898), Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, 1882, watercolour over graphite, 42 x 28.4 cm. On loan from a private collection. | Dan Brault (born in 1979), Lingering in Time’s House (Vanitas), 2016, acrylic and oil on canvas. MMFA, purchase, gift of R. Fournelle. Photo MMFA, Christine Guest/ N. L. Peschier (1659–1661), Vanitas (detail), 1660, oil on canvas, 70 × 89.5 cm. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Michal Hornstein. Photo MMFA, Christine Guest | Mario Gagnon (born in 1953) for ALTO DESIGN, Proposed Design for Dinnerware and Flatware, 2004, Walnut, resin, porcelain. On loan from Alto Design, Montreal. Photo MMFA, Christine Guest

– 30 – Press Room: mbam.qc.ca/en/press-room Information Patricia Lachance Media Relations Officer | MMFA T. 514-285-1600, ext. 315 C. 514-235-2044 plachance@mbamtl.org

Maude N. Béland Media Relations Officer | MMFA T. 514-285-1600, ext. 205 C. 514-886-8328 mbeland@mbamtl.org

About the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts The MMFA is one of Canada’s most visited museums and the eighth-most visited museum in North America, boasting more than 1.3 million visitors. The Museum’s original temporary exhibitions combine various artistic disciplines – fine arts, music, film, fashion and design – and are exported around the world. Its rich encyclopedic collection, distributed among five pavilions, includes international art, world cultures, decorative arts and design, and Quebec and Canadian art. The Museum has seen exceptional growth in recent years with the addition of two new pavilions: the Claire and Marc Bourgie Pavilion, in 2011, and the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion for Peace, in 2016. The MMFA complex includes Bourgie Hall, a 460-seat concert hall. The MMFA is one of Canada’s leading publishers of art books in French and English, which are distributed internationally. The Museum also houses the Michel de la Chenelière International Atelier for Education and Art Therapy, the largest educational complex in a North American art museum, enabling the MMFA to offer innovative educational, wellness and art therapy programmes. mbam.qc.ca