Cleo’s new neighbours

By Jason C. McLean on May 31, 2010 – 4:11 pmNo Comment

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Post bills please: The Lower Main gets a makeover

The artsits of Café Cleopatre have some new neighbours. No, the businesses evicted by the Angus Development Corporation and the city haven’t returned, but at least now, the boarded-up look is gone and has been replaced by graffiti.

On Friday, over 30 artists organized by Sterling Downey, operating under the name of Bombe sur la Main and with the approval of the Quartier de spectacles transformed the facades of the boarded up buildings on St-Laurent between the Monument Nationale and St-Catherine into art.

While it might be strange seeing the infinitely recognizable front of the former Montreal Pool Room turned into a mural, it’s definitely an improvement on what was there just after the business moved across the street a few months ago. In fact, while it’s sad that the block had it’s newly forming life sucked out of it by Angus head Christian Yaccarini so he could build an office building where it doesn’t belong, it is cool to see what these artists have done with the place. There’s even a tribute to Café Cleopatre and the Red Light history of the area.

No matter what you think of this initiative, though, you’ll have to agree that it’s better than an office tower.

The former facade of the Montreal Pool Room

Over 30 artists working for 12 hours

part of Bombe sur la Main

Similar aesthetic? Former home of the Katakombes

Not just ground level

Watching over the Main

Neighbours on either side for the Cleo

Photos by Jason C. McLean

For more, including photos of the completed works, please click here. For a video report by the CBC, please click here.

Jason C. McLean is a Montreal-based actor, writer, activist, culture-jammer and sometimes singer. He is a co-founder of the Forget The Box Media Collective and currently the editor of Forget The Box Magazine as well as a columnist (The Soapbox), theatre and music reviewer and general contributor. Jason is also a co-creator, writer and in-character host of JC Sunshine's Fireside Chat on Forget The Box TV. Outside of FTB, Jason is a co-founder of the International infringement Festival, organizer of the Montreal infringement Festival and a member of Optative Theatrical Laboratories where he acts, writes, organizes and contributes to the Optative Blog. He also contributes to Art Threat, has written for the Montreal Mirror and holds a BA in Journalism from Concordia University.