L’imprimerie, centre d’artistes is a production space dedicated to print and photographic practices.
MISSION
Mission and mandate
L’imprimerie, centre d’artistes is a production artist-run centre dedicated to print and photographic practices.
The centre supports research and creation in an interdisciplinary and professional development perspective. It welcomes artists and creators from all domains (visual arts, illustration, publishing, performing arts and others) regardless of their ability and provides them with working spaces as well as resources and specialized expertise in digital and analogue printing techniques. Offering residencies, classes, exchanges and assistance tailored to the needs of its community, which spark research and the transfer of knowledge and technical skills, L’imprimerie also favours the use of processes and products that are non-toxic or harmful to the environment, and promotes collaborations with other organizations to improve its activities.
Vision and values
Art begins with its making.
The print is a starting point, an opportunity to experiment, to learn, to think, and to create.
L’imprimerie supports practices that are contemporary, professional, hybrid, evolving, parallel, unruly, collaborative, popular and responsible.
L’imprimerie is inclusive, free-spirited, and committed.
Gender-neutral writing
The printing company recognizes the gender diversity of its audience, which is why we have adopted gender-neutral writing. We use the median point as well as neologisms such as créateurices and the pronoun they/them.
Inclusion and Support Policy
L’imprimerie seeks to support artists who, due to their identities or atypical backgrounds, encounter structural and systemic obstacles in their artistic practices. Particular attention will be given to BIPOC (Black, indigenous and people of Colour), members of the LGBTQIA2S+ communities, to people with different abilities as well as those living with a disability or chronic illness.
L’imprimerie encourages self-identification by the artists and creators involved, in order to promote a plural representation of diversity within the artist-run centre. We are aware that each person’s identity is multidimensional, changing and evolving, and that many people prefer to identify themselves in a fluid way.
We encourage artists to self-identify in their own words in relation to the wheel of privilege. You can consult this reference tool to let us know your reality, in relation to one or more of these aspects, so that we can better welcome you (translation, studio visit, personalized meeting, discussion with the team, accessibility measure etc.).
Territorial recognition
L’imprimerie is located on unceded Indigenous territory. Tiohtià:ke/Mooniyang/Montreal is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations, and today, a diverse Indigenous population, as well as other peoples, reside there. Many Indigenous peoples, communities, and nations contributed to the founding of Tiohtià:ke. However, it is understood and commonly accepted that the Kanien’kehá:ka Nation has a strong and uninterrupted historical presence in this territory, specifically in two communities neighboring Montreal: Kahnawà:ke and Kanehsatá:ke.
Our presence on these lands has been made possible by genocide and a history of violence, assimilation, and erasure of Indigenous peoples. It is our responsibility to critique and question colonial histories and their current manifestations, to remember to care for the lands and waters around us, and that they are not meant to be plundered, exploited, or appropriated.
We must recognize the role they have played in protecting and preserving the lands and waters we mutually enjoy today. Their stewardship can serve as a model for the collective respect we owe to the natural environment and the community in which we live, in their entirety.
PACBI
In solidarity with the Palestinian people, L’imprimerie, centre d’artistes adheres to the Palestinian Call for Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI), part of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. We are committed to not collaborating with Israeli cultural or academic institutions or with funding organizations linked to them, due to their complicity in denying the rights of Palestinians. This commitment is not directed at individuals, but rather at structures that normalize apartheid. We invite artistic communities to publicly support these principles and defend Palestinian voices.
HISTORY
L’imprimerie, centre d’artistes came to life in 2016 with the integration of le Cabinet, espace de production photographique and Atelier Graff. Drawn by the desire to rethink the role and operations of artist-run centres within the cultural ecosystem, these two organizations combined their strengths, knowledge, and resources to set up a new platform for experimentation, research and creation that responds to the needs of creators.
L’Atelier
Graff
Founded in 1966 by artist Pierre Ayot (1943-1995) with the aim of allowing creators to explore with greater freedom the various printmaking processes, the centre was first known as Atelier libre 848, then Graff, centre de conception graphique (1974), and finally Atelier Graff (2011). As one of Canada’s very first artist-run centres, it adopted from the outset a cooperative structure that promoted exchange of ideas and expertise between creators. Graff’s distinctive inventiveness and avant-garde thinking would endure for over five decades.
Several key events punctuated Atelier Graff’s great history: the production in the 70s of major livres d’artistes (Pilulorum, Graffofones, Corridart 1976, pour la liberté d’expression, etc.); a retrospective at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal and the publication of the book Le monde selon Graff for the centre’s 20th anniversary; and the creation of the Prix Graff, which has been awarded to 15 mid-career artists between 1995 and 2011 – artists like Thomas Corriveau, BGL, Michel de Broin and Raphaëlle de Groot. The centre has also curated several exhibitions that secured its key role in the development of printmaking practices, and has created many residency projects for emerging artists (projet insertion) and visiting foreign creators. In 2016, Graff celebrated its 50th anniversary with a bang by joining forces with le Cabinet, espace de production photographique and settling down in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, in one of Ateliers créatifs Montréal’s buildings. In February of 2017, Atelier Graff officially changed its name to L’imprimerie, centre d’artistes.
le Cabinet,
espace de production photographique
le Cabinet opened its doors in 2012 with the aim of providing personalized and accessible digital printing services to Montreal’s photography community. Thanks to the relentless work of its four artist-founders, Noémie da Silva, Flavia Majlis, Jacinthe Robillard and Catherine Tremblay, the centre quickly became a sought-after meeting place and support structure for artists. Plenty of activities were initiated: thematic evenings (les Consultations), professional classes (the Work in Progress Clinics), artist residencies, and participation in the Salon du Chat des artistes. In 2015, le Cabinet launched the Montreal Emerging Photography Award, and went on to receive the Prix de la relève from the Caisse de la Culture the following year (2016). Above all, le Cabinet has single-handedly managed to offer high-quality professional services, eliciting the recognition and confidence of renowned artists. In 2016, le Cabinet joined forces with Atelier Graff to develop and ensure the perennity of its services.
TEAM
Executive Director
Laurie Magnan (They/Them)
direction@limprimerie.art
514-360-1244, station 224
514-360-1244, station 224
Programming Director
Administrative support manager
Babette Goossens (She/Her)
admin@limprimerie.art
514-360-1244, station 223
514-360-1244, station 223
Technical and Artistic Advisor in digital printing
Caroline Savaria (She/Her)
numerique@limprimerie.art
514-360-1244, station 221
514-360-1244, station 221
Digital workshop technician
Julie Ciot (She/Her)
ateliernumerique@limprimerie.art
514-360-1244, station 226
514-360-1244, station 226
Studio Technician
Jean-Michel Leclerc (He/Him)
ateliers@limprimerie.art
514-360-1244
514-360-1244
Reception and Communications Manager
Eugénie Gaultier Boucher (She/Her)
art@limprimerie.art
514-360-1244, station 225
514-360-1244, station 225
Board of Directors
Co-President
Élie Corbin
Élie Corbin
Co-President
Sabina Rak
Sabina Rak
Secretary
Laurence Bissonnette
Laurence Bissonnette
Treasurer
Cristel Silva Silva
Cristel Silva Silva
Director
Aziza Nassih
Aziza Nassih
Director
Laurianne Lalonde
Laurianne Lalonde
Director
Zuzanna Maria Rokita
Zuzanna Maria Rokita
Privacy Officer
Laurie Magnan
Laurie Magnan
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