POP MONTREAL! 2007

POP MONTREAL: For those of us who slave away in the belows of the Montreal scene machine, Pop Montreal is to us, what Christmas must be to tiny Elf’s. D-Day. Lots and lots of work fallowed by a brief period of joy and chaos, fallowed by a hang over.

Pop site>>> here.
This Year was no different, though I didn’t come close to breaking my record of out put last year, of nine posters, a solo show of seven large paintings and one sculpture. Not that I really wanted to repeat that experience, but I did make a go at it. Here’s what I did…

FIVE SUPER POSTERS: This is a tradition I’ve decided to keep up. For three years now, I have used Pop Montreal to create a series of five super hero themed posters. They began has “hipster vs. heroes” as I called them. Local scenester locked in a literal struggle with the best Super heroes in the Business. (You can see past years posters in my portfolio archives >>> 2005, 2006)

The Fallowing year I did the same thing, this time with different locals, facing off with Super Villains. The Drawings got better and good become evil, but not much really changed. Later I would attend a party where a decidedly wasted fellow would volunteer that he had been disappointed that year’s posters. “Really” I said, a bit surprised as the feedback had been mostly good. “Yeah dude.” he offered gently, “I just expected you to try harder.”

Now, regardless of the fact that this person had been up all night and was actually at his first party on the second day of a drug bender, I decided to take his words to heart. And when it came to creating a new series of posters for this year. Try harder I did. Each poster featuring painstakingly executed full detail backgrounds of recognizable settings in Montreal. In unmistakable evolutionary leap in my poster work, as I would usually avoid tricky things like perspective that building entail, and opt instead for the convenient setting of a pink abyss.

This year each poster features a different time of day, and makes the passage from dawn to dark, through the experiences of various Supers, who are ambiguously based on some real life Montreal Heroes…

POP AND POLICY: This was a funny one. Now I can actually say that I’ve lectured at Mcgill University, even if it was only for a group of 8 people. (It was nice of them to stay) The panel was supposed to be on public art, but I don’t think that any of the participants remembered that, because we wound up talking about, music, money and Metallica. It was fun listening to the other panelists though, and Rupert Bottenberg who moderated totally saved us.

OTHER THINGS ON MY POP TO DO LIST: Included presenting a show. Now this wasn’t as difficult as it sounds. Because in reality all that had happened was that Dan Seligman, or Shawn Petche, or some other serious sort who works at Pop Montreal decided to just throw my name onto a bill “Jack Dylan and Friends presents” for no other good reason than the shear hell of the thing. Guess they thought it would be good for myself esteem or something. Like the time they told me I could be stage manager at a big benefit concert. (When in fact there was all ready a real stage manager, and my grand position was real only in my own head. Kind of like when my parents told me that I had won a game of Trivial Pursuit at age 5. An accomplishment which I had bragged about proudly for many year, until the inevitable real game transpired, and I discovered that the questions ranged far beyond the subject of the Ghostbusters.)

But despite all this. I decided to take the opportunity that Pop’s apathy had afforded me, and present the Woodhands Show, Hilotron, The Magic, Gift Shop show. Not have heard of three out of the four bands, I elected to present only the last band. And when the two pretty door girls greeted me warmly and with the special reverence reserved for those with authority, I knew that I had made the right choice. Later on however when they asked me what they were supposed to do with the door money, I decided that a rearranging of the power structure was in order, confessed that I had no idea what was going on, and promoted them.

When came time to the actually presenting, I was too quiet, a mere medium funny, and more of a waste of time than a party starter. But Woodhads were awesome as usual and you should give them a listen >>> here.

PUCE POP: Puce pop is the fantastic arts and crafts fair that takes place for two days during the festival. Providing struggling artists like myself an opportunity to finally make some money off their work. (Sorely needed when Pop’s going rate is $40/design. Thanks for nothing Dan!) Thanks to everyone who came out to support. It was great to meet you and hear your feedback; and I didn’t even loose my voice this year, which is another Pop tradition of mine.

THE POP CASTS : Now this was my favorite unexpected suprise of Pop. For thoes of you familre with them, the Pop Casts are delightful (though infrequent) feature on the Pop Montreal web site. Hosted be my friend Andrew Rose, a.k.a. Superman, for anyone whos still reading.

Anyways, during the long nights of inking and colouring, I would periodically recive phone calls from Andrew, and we would chat about the highlights of the festival. We did Four episodes in this fasion, and cover the gamit from Art, Mario Cart, to Mcgill girls. Here are the four episodes…

1 >>> FIRST:
2 >>> SECOND:
3 >>> THIRD:
4 >>> FOURTH: