Moving mountains (Déplacer des montagnes)
Présenté dans le cadre de l'exposition collective Transformations à McGill, printemps 2023;
En couverture de Folio Magazine, printemps 2023;
Extrait publié dans What Makes a Lake? Tracing Movement, été 2023.
The mound in these photographs stands on what used to be woodland, decimated for the construction of the A25 toll bridge that crosses over the river –now the Olivier-Charbonneau bridge. The artificial hillock was formed by the massive accumulation of earth and debris dug up during the construction phase of the highway-bridge (2008-2011).
Over the years, this mountain of dirt has become a regularly visited site, prompting an unknown individual to plant a stool on its top. Though the mound sits close to the river, where sunsets are breathtakingly beautiful to witness, the massive cable-stayed structure stands between them and obstructs the view. What we see from the hilltop is an incessant parade of vehicles crossing the bridge.
The story of this mound is the story of a bridge is the story of the degradation of Skowanoti –the Back River, or Rivière des Prairies– and the disappearance of multiple lifeforms sustained by it. It is also the story of those lives that persist in the ever deteriorating conditions.
These stories are part of a larger political tale of gentrification and displacement in the area.
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