About the Work
Maxime Sauvage’s most recent work continues his practice of subtle interventions in public space. Inspired by abandoned storefronts, the triptych evokes both the vacant shops of the neighborhood and the precarity of cultural venues.
Each image uses the backlighting of light boxes to emphasize the uncanny nature of these deserted windows — illuminated from within, as if by accident. By détourning the codes of urban signage, the artist sheds light on the fragility of a social fabric undermined by real estate speculation.
Importantly, the storefronts shown are not documented locations, but rather models built from salvaged materials, exposed to the elements, and later photographed. The resulting images resemble false advertisements or mirrors of a city in flux.
Balancing fiction and observation, Vacants offers a meditative reflection on urban space, where a shared memory continues to be written despite instability.
Artist Biography
Maxime Sauvage is an artist working primarily in performance art and installation. Deeply contextual, his practice examines the logics of productivity and efficiency that shape our built environment, focusing on the traces they leave behind.
He is currently completing a Master’s degree in Visual Arts at Université Laval. He also holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Concordia University and a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Design from UQAM.
A co-production by Manif d’art and the School of Art at Université Laval.
Manif d’art and Université Laval’s School of Art gratefully acknowledge the support of the Centre Alyne-LeBel.
