VanHorne & Waverly explores artistic life in Mile End neighbourhood
Documentary portrays artists Radwan Moumneh, Glen LeMesurier and Rouge Lefevbre
This documentary follows three artists as they forge, mix/illuminate, perform and paint new works in one of Canada’s most densely populated artist communities. The post-industrial buildings at the intersection of VanHorne and Waverly in Montreal’s Mile End neighbourhood host a plethora of creative workspaces, home to some of the city’s most intriguing and successful artists.
Meet three of the neighbourhood’s mainstay creators: installation artist/sculptor Glen Lemesurier, Beirut-born musician/performance artist Radwan Moumneh, and visual artist Rouge Lefebvre, who spent much of her childhood dancing for Les Grands Ballets Canadiens.
The film is set primarily in and around the Jardin du Crépuscule, a sculpture garden in an abandoned lot that is currently being "squatted" by over 50 statues.
As the threat of new real estate development encroaches on this "green" neighbourhood space, filmmaker/sustainability consultant Geneva Guerin tells the story of how these and other artists have come together to transform the northern limits of Mile End from a bleak row of industrial warehouses to an active creative hub and community gathering-space. Plateau-Mont-Royal borough councillor Richard Ryan provides some complimentary backstory about the Mile End and how it evolved to become such an artist’s haven.
It features performances by Jerusalem in My Heart, harpist Sarah Pagé (Barr Brothers) and saxophonist Jason Sharp.