Pounding the Pavement

The McCord Stewart Museum, whose mission is to document the social history of Montreal, is especially well placed to explore the genre of street photography. Its Photography collection brings together over 2,150,000 photographs documenting Montreal, Quebec and Canada. Like other big cities, Montreal has inspired a remarkable number of photographers looking to share their unique vision of the city. The exhibition features fonds that have been in the collection for a number of years (e.g., David W. Marvin, Paul-Marc Auger, Clara Gutsche, John Taylor, Ronald E. Fleischman), as well as several donations by contemporary photographers (e.g., Gilbert Duclos, Bertrand Carrière, Normand Rajotte, David Hlynsky, Daniel Kieffer).

A mural composed of 24 images results from a community project in collaboration with L’Itinéraire, a Montreal organization that supports people who are socially and economically vulnerable, at risk of homelessness, or struggling with addiction or mental health problem. This partnership gave six amateurs the chance to participate in a series of workshops on street photography with Bertrand Carrière. The images they produced reflect their unique and intimate vision of Montreal’s streets.

On April 9, 1998, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the publication of a photograph by Gilbert Duclos depicting a young woman on a Montreal sidewalk—seen in the exhibition— violated her right to her image. This decision, rendered following a 10-year legal saga, was a turning point for street photography in Quebec. A mural in the exhibition presents this image alongside news clippings relating these facts. 

During a round table discussion at the Museum (on Thursday, April 24, at 6 p.m.), Gilbert Duclos himself will revisit the “Duclos affair” and its repercussions. He will be joined by other photographers and specialists to discuss street photography in Montreal since 1998, exploring issues like the evolution of the public’s attitude to photographers, the importance of consent, and the influence of social media on the practice of photography in the public sphere. 

The photographs are presented in their original format (as they were printed by the photographers at the time they were taken), tracing the evolution of photographic techniques and equipment from the 1860s to now.

Most of the images in the exhibition were taken between the 1970s and the early 1990s, the golden age of street photography in Montreal. This period also happened to be the heyday of a particular combination of analog technology: handheld devices and black and white film (35 mm).

Environmentally aware and convinced that museums can play a part in the transition to a more sustainable future, the McCord Stewart Museum has set itself the goal of minimizing the amount of waste generated by its exhibitions. During the conception and production of the exhibition Pounding the Pavement. Montreal Street Photography, various eco-design strategies were adopted aimed at reducing its environmental impact: we reused display cases, audiovisual equipment, light boxes, picture rails and frames; used certified Green Seal paint; and purchased reusable PVC panels.

The publication produced to accompany the exhibition was designed and printed locally on FSC-certified paper using vegetable inks, minimizing this book’s environmental footprint.

An exhibition produced by the McCord Stewart Museum

Curator
Zoë Tousignant, Curator, Photography

Project Management
Caroline Truchon, Senior Project Manager, Exhibitions

Exhibition Design and Graphic Design
Principal

McCord Stewart Museum team 

Exhibitions
Eve Martineau, Coordinator, Exhibitions
Catherine K. Laflamme, Senior Project Manager, Exhibitions
Annie-Pier Brunelle, Assistant, Exhibitions (intern)
Mélissa Jacques, Supervisor, Technical Services, Exhibitions
Olivier LeBlanc-Roy,  Technician, Exhibitions
Eugénie Bonneville, technicienne, Technician, Exhibitions
Julien Pouliot, Technical Coordinator 

Conservation
Caterina Florio, Head, Conservation
Denis Plourde, Conservation Assistant 

Collections Management and Digital Outreach
Karine Rousseau, Head, Collections Management
Geneviève Déziel, Cataloguing Coordinator, Collections Management
Camille Deshaies-Forget, Assistant, Collections Management
Jean-Christophe Chenette, Senior Technician, Collections Management
Stéphanie Poisson, Head, Digital Outreach, Collections and Exhibitions
Anne-Frédérique Beaulieu-Plamondon, Officer, Digital Outreach, Collections and Exhibitions
Roger Aziz, Photographer 

Education, Community Engagement and Cultural Programs
Clara Chouinard, Project Manager, Education, Community Engagement and Cultural Programs
Elysa Lachapelle, Project Manager, Education, Community Engagement and Cultural Programs
Cultural Mediation Team 

Marketing, Communications and Visitor Experience
Marc-André Champagne, Officer, Public Relations 

External Team

Editing and Translation
Judith Terry
Hélène Joly

Printing
Louis Lussier

Graphic Production
Pro Séri

Installation
Espace Montage

Lighting Design
LightFactor

Film Direction
Vincent Lafrance

Audiovisual Installation
Éric Fauque

Painting
René Gauthier