A Wealth of Exhibitions in the Quartier des Spectacles
View of Caroline Monnet’s installation “Pidikwe,” presented at the Cinémathèque québécoise until November 2
With the arrival of mild autumnal weather, indoor activities get more enticing—it’s a great season for exploring the museums and galleries of the Quartier des Spectacles. Here’s a look at what’s on this fall.
Galerie de l’UQAM
1400 Berri St., Pavillon Judith-Jasmin | Room J-120
In Praise of the Missing Image by Raphaël Barontini, Gabrielle Goliath and Caroline Mauxion
Until October 25
Galerie de l’UQAM presents works by three artists who imagine political and poetic ways to respond to the present and envision the future:
- Twòn Kreyol, by Guadeloupean visual artist Raphaël Barontini, celebrates key figures in the struggle against slavery.
- Elegy – for two ancestors, an installation by South African artist Gabrielle Goliath, features seven opera singers holding a single note for one hour, honouring the memory of two women killed in the Ovahereros and Namas genocide in the early 20th century.
- With Must Every Step Touch the Ground?, Caroline Mauxion questions the norms that govern our embodied experiences, through the prism of disability.
GLHF – GG no RE, j’espère que tu vas bien by Jules Mayrand
Until October 25
In this show, Jules Mayrand, a visual and media arts student at UQAM, uses ethnographic research as the starting point for a sensitive examination of socialization and social structures in online gaming communities.
Cinémathèque québécoise
335 De Maisonneuve Blvd. East
Pidikwe by Caroline Monnet
Until November 2
Pidikwe is an installation at the intersection of cinema, visual art and performance. It celebrates the strength of Indigenous women of different generations, continuing centuries of resistance to exploitation and colonialism. The work is a kind of digital sculpture that blurs temporal boundaries while emphasizing dance and language—two powerful community-oriented healing tools.
View of Caroline Monnet’s installation “Pidikwe,” presented at the Cinémathèque québécoise until November 2
Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal
Place Ville Marie, Gallery Level
In Praise of the Missing Image by Iván Argote, Maureen Gruben, Joyce Joumaa, Niap, Lee Shulman + Omar Victor Diop – The Anonymous Project and Sanaz Sohrabi
Until March 8, 2026
This group show is presented by the MAC and MOMENTA as part of the 19th edition of the Biennale d’art contemporain. The artists explore the role and power of the image in the dissemination of historical narratives, particularly in the process of exclusion and marginalization.
The works include sculptures by the Colombian artist Iván Argote, the multimedia creations of Tuktoyaktuk native Maureen Gruben, the works of Lebanese-Canadian visual artist Joyce Joumaa and creations by Nancy Saunders, a multidisciplinary artist from Kuujjuaq.
Visual of the exhibition "In Praise of the Missing Image," co-presented by the MAC and MOMENTA
Promenade des Artistes
YAWENDA’
Until November 9
A celebration of 40 years of Indigenous theatre in Quebec, YAWENDA’ is a three-part circuit: an open-air exhibition on the Promenade des Artistes, a historical exhibit in the Espace ONF and a video projection called Woli kpotenom – purification, shown every evening on the façade of UQAM’s Pavillon Président-Kennedy.
The exhibition explores three key periods in the history of Indigenous theatre, revealing its impact on memory and cultural resistance.
MEM – Centre des mémoires montréalaises
1210 Saint-Laurent Blvd.
Detours – Urban Experiences
Until January 2027
Through original staging built around video, this immersive exhibition explores surprising and unusual facets of life in Montreal. Up-close-and-personal encounters with singular Montrealers alternate with larger-than-life collective moments. This unique exhibition, which inspires a wide range of emotions in viewers, won the Prix Numix in the In situ category.
VOX, centre de l’image contemporaine
2 Sainte-Catherine St. East
On Lies, Secrets and Silence by Frida Orupabo
Until November 29
Norwegian-Nigerian plastic artist Frida Orupabo focuses on domestic space, a site of both intimacy and control, to explore historic representations of the Black body. Using collage and materials from colonial archives, she examines power structures and develops an iconography that values the political, aesthetic and erotic subjectivity of bodies. Confronted with reconstructions of feminine figures that expose tensions linked to identity and memory, the viewer becomes both observer and observed.
Once Upon a Time, Malaika by Moridja Kitenge Banza
Until November 29
This production offers an artistic reflection on public monuments, museums and collective memory. Young audiences discover the exhibition through the eyes of Malaika Ire, a princess who travels through time to meet her ancestors. Visiting sites scarred by colonialism and the slave trade, children are invited to think about the ways in which history is presented to them.
Le Belgo
372 Sainte-Catherine St. West
The Belgo building houses the largest concentration of contemporary art galleries in Canada. Around twenty galleries are spread across four floors, offering a wide variety of exhibitions and artistic events throughout the year. Admission is free!
Le Belgo