Techno Worlds and their Raves at the School Library

Techno Worlds at Phi Centre. Photo Hannah Wan.

The PHI Centre, the Goethe-Institut and the Société des arts technologiques (SAT) will collaborate to present the Canadian premiere of Techno Worlds, from May 13 to June 19.

This free exhibition invites you to discover techno culture by presenting music, art, pop, media, and technology in relation to the techno scene in a journey separated by three different venues.

The techno atmosphere of this exhibition transcends its artistic installations and extends to the very architecture of the places hosting these works. The dark, grey and hard surfaces of brutalist architecture, a style well-suited to techno culture, permeates the interior design of all three venues — in rising increments. Yes, it gets darker, greyer, and harder, as visitors move through more and more remote and underground locations with each venue, culminating in an evening visit to the SAT basement for the final installations.

Venue I: The PHI Centre (1-2PM)

Seven installations greet visitors on their first stop.

Airy and bright, this venue is bathed in afternoon sunlight on a sunny day. The massive crossword wall next to the entrance is likely the first installation that catches the eye of Techno Worlds explorers. Despite initiating them on their Techno journey, this wall probably won’t be a favourite that visitors will fondly return to before leaving, as players need to have esoteric knowledge of techno culture to get any correct answer. In other words, this crossword might make you feel a bit stupid (ahem, I sure know it did for me). Techno explorers can then move to the adjacent room to enjoy a short film, or walk around in this second room to appreciate the few other art installations.

Venue II: Goethe-Institut (3-4PM)

Wilkommen! Five installations await participants at this second venue. The main installation is a slide show of comics created by African-American artists, accompanied by the rhythm of techno music. Although all three venues include some stations that play music, the best auditory experience stations can be found at the Goethe-Institut. One particular art installation invites Techno explorers to wear their headphones and listen to a 3D audio recording while watching a specially developed digital video. It doesn’t seem like much, but the experience is designed to be “trippy”, and this works!

Venue III: Société des arts technologiques (5-6PM)

Last but not least, the third venue will host the final installations.

Visitors stay in the basement, where the sight of concrete is inescapable and where colourful photographs of various sizes decorate grey walls. In this final venue, the attention is paid to detail as Techno explorers are led to scrutinize dozens and dozens of printed images and written texts. Taken together, these prints seem to recount a series of rave-goer adventures and their most remarkable exploits — from clashes with police trying to break up raves to tales of police station sieges.

For more information on the social messages and meanings behind Techno Worlds, I suggest readers visit this website created by writers at the Phi Center. Info HERE.

Venues and Locations

Part 1: PHI Centre
Espace Rhino & Espace Plateau
315 Saint-Paul St West
Montreal, Quebec, H2Y 2M3
• Tuesday: 10 am to 5 pm
• Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday: 10 am to 8 pm
• Friday and Saturday: 10 am to 9:30 pm

Part 2: Goethe-Institut Montreal
1626 Boulevard Saint-Laurent
Montreal, Quebec, H2X 2T1
• Monday: 3 pm to 6 pm 
• Tuesday to Saturday: 3 pm to 8 pm

Part 3: Society for Arts and Technology
1201 Boulevard Saint-Laurent
Montreal, Quebec, H2X 2S6
• Tuesday to Saturday: 5 pm to 10 pm

Admission is free, no reservation required.