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THE ANTECHAMBER OF DEATH
Exhibition (Installation)
At "articule"
From February 13 to March 22, 2009
When the sublime singer that was Maria Callas died of heart failure, it seemed to certain of her admirers to be the ultimate insult: an ordinarydeath, devoid of mystery and without scandal, a death not worthy of a woman of her grandeur. Some tried to romanticise Callas' death with speculations of suicide in an attempt to lend an air of mystery to that most natural and banal of phenomena: death.
In response to this desire for glorification, the installation The Antechamber of Death is a spectacular and scintillating homage that is inspired by, and embellishes upon, the circumstances surrounding Maria Callas' death. An imaginary diva named Elizabetha Von Gorgenstein has passed away in the antichamber of her château in the suburbs of Paris. Like Callas, she had withdrawn from the outside world after a series of painful liaisons, living in isolation but for her chauffeur, gardener, dressmaker, hairdresser... and her maid - a muscular young man who goes by the name of "Doyle." Also like Callas, the diva left a handwritten note in her bedside journal; it contained the first lines of the aria "Suicidio" from Ponchielli's La Gioconda.
Murder, suicide, or natural death? Raising questions of a feminist nature, this installation dissects the circumstances in which the corpse - bathed in an atmosphere of strange perfection - was found. Welcome to The Antechamber of Death, where blood, grace, and drama go hand in hand.
DOWNLOAD THE TEXT OF SKYE MAULE-O'BRIEN : Glitz & Gore – about Céline B. La Terreur’s Antechamber of Death. |
Photo : Charles Prévost
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THE ANTECHAMBER OF DEATH : PICTURES OF THE OPENING
Opening : Friday February 13 at 7pm
PHOTOS : CHARLES PRÉVOST
THE ANTECHAMBER OF DEATH
Exhibition (Installation)
At "articule"
From February 13 to March 22, 2009
When the sublime singer that was Maria Callas died of heart failure, it seemed to certain of her admirers to be the ultimate insult: an ordinarydeath, devoid of mystery and without scandal, a death not worthy of a woman of her grandeur. Some tried to romanticise Callas' death with speculations of suicide in an attempt to lend an air of mystery to that most natural and banal of phenomena: death.
In response to this desire for glorification, the installation The Antechamber of Death is a spectacular and scintillating homage that is inspired by, and embellishes upon, the circumstances surrounding Maria Callas' death. An imaginary diva named Elizabetha Von Gorgenstein has passed away in the antichamber of her château in the suburbs of Paris. Like Callas, she had withdrawn from the outside world after a series of painful liaisons, living in isolation but for her chauffeur, gardener, dressmaker, hairdresser... and her maid - a muscular young man who goes by the name of "Doyle." Also like Callas, the diva left a handwritten note in her bedside journal; it contained the first lines of the aria "Suicidio" from Ponchielli's La Gioconda.
Murder, suicide, or natural death? Raising questions of a feminist nature, this installation dissects the circumstances in which the corpse - bathed in an atmosphere of strange perfection - was found. Welcome to The Antechamber of Death, where blood, grace, and drama go hand in hand.
DOWNLOAD THE TEXT OF SKYE MAULE-O'BRIEN : Glitz & Gore – about Céline B. La Terreur’s Antechamber of Death. |
Photo : Charles Prévost
|
THE ANTECHAMBER OF DEATH : PICTURES OF THE OPENING
Opening : Friday February 13 at 7pm
PHOTOS : CHARLES PRÉVOST
Photo : Charles Prévost
Photo : Charles Prévost
Photo : Charles Prévost
Photo : Charles Prévost
Photo : Charles Prévost
Photo : Charles Prévost
A drawing of the diva, on the autopsy table
Photo : Charles Prévost
Elizabetha Von Gorgenstein and Veronica Love
Photo : Charles Prévost
Detail of the installation
Photo : Charles Prévost
Photo : Charles Prévost
Photo : Charles Prévost
Detail of the installation
Photo : Charles Prévost
Photo : Charles Prévost
Photo : Charles Prévost
PICTURES OF THE INSTALLATION
Photos : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
Photo : Guy L'Heureux
PRESS KIT ON "THE ANTECHAMBER OF DEATH"
ARTICLES :
2009 • Mavrikakis, Nicolas. “Le chant du cygne”. In : Voir Montréal, édition du 19 au 25 février 2009.
2009• Malo, Kit. “Terreur on St-Valentine’s”. In : The Frozen Mammoth, 14.02.2009. www.thefrozenmammoth.com/tag/celine-b-la-terreur/
2009• Fadden, Robyn. “Death Becomes Her”. In : Montreal Hour, 12.02.2009, p. 12.
2009• De Wolfe, Stacey. « Bloody Drama ». In : Montreal Mirror, 12.02.2009, p.45.
2009• Maurice, Céline.”Céline B. La Terreur : L’Antichambre de la Mort ». In : Univarts, Paris. 10.02.200.
www.univarts.com/mag/article/2172.html
2009 • « Expo : Céline B. La Terreur ». In : Nightlife Magazine, Février 2009, p.4.
2009 • Maule-O’Brien, Skye. “Glitz & Gore – about Céline B. La Terreur’s Antechamber of Death.” In : Articule’s Writing Series, 2008-2009’s programming season.
2009 • Delgado, Jérôme. "Galeries - Du concret Delvoye à la virtuelle Biennale".In : Le Devoir, édition du samedi 17 et du dimanche 18 janvier 2009
RADIO INTERVIEWS (IN FRENCH ONLY) :
2009 •Radio-Canada. Vous êtes ici, interview with Patrick Masbourian, on The Antechamber of Death, 11.03.2009.
2009 • CISM, CHOQ FM, Émission UN SHOW DE MOT’ARTS, interview with Éloi Desjardins, about l’Antichambre de la Mort. 3, 7,10 march 2009.
Special Thanks to :
Articule
Catherine Bodmer
Skye Maule-O'Brien
Joyce Yahouda
Maud Chayer
The band members of the Céline B. La Terreur
Sylvain
Charles Prévost
Guy L'Heureux
Lise Boisvert
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