A piece of paradise (2025)

“A piece of paradise,” a little solar-powered, sun-reflective robot seeking sunlight in a parking lot. From an afternoon of performances and site specific installations on August 23rd, 2025 (“Emprunter Alexandra-Marconi Performances et installations in-situ”) facilitated by Lynn Hughes, Francine Lalonde and Produit Rien.

From Produit Rien:
“Between Marconi Street, the CP train tracks, Saint-Zotique and Jean Talon, there is a neglected but fascinating area that functions as both a recreational space and an informal passageway. This enclave contains magical nooks, including  small wooded areas and the railroad line. On the other hand, it also clogs up roads in the neighbourhood and becomes a heat island in summer.
 
We wondered whether an area that has been abandoned for so long and does not seem to belong to anyone might, in fact, belong to everyone. Could a privately owned, neglected site be re-appropriated and turned into a public space? What purpose might such a space serve, other than as a place to walk through or park cars? How might we preserve the free, untamed qualities of such a space and protect the neighbourhood from the adverse effects of its transformation? Could a few minimal, artistic or urbanistic interventions bring people together and collectively transform the area into more than a series of desire paths? What future do we envision for this space? 
 
The artists and architects participating in this exhibition all have ties to the area—some live and work here, others have lived and worked here in the past, some have been evicted or worry they still might be, and others simply pass through the area regularly. “