Watch an explanatory video of the exhibition with the curator (in french) Musée des Beaux-arts de Shebrooke 241 Rue Dufferin, Sherbrooke, QC J1H 4M3 Event -- Meet the Artist-Perfumer, Sunday, February 2, 2025, from 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM.

Stroll in the Forest. Exhibition of the MBAS Collection – Guest Artists: Alexandra Bachand & Thomas Corriveau TEMPORARY EXHIBITION September 26, 2024, to April 20, 2025 Curator: Frédérique Renaud The immersive atmosphere of the forest is brought to life in this multisensory exhibition. The selected works echo the long-standing landscape tradition in Quebec art while also reflecting artistic practices that explore nature in all its intricate details.



Do you hear the canary's song? by Alexandra Bachand is an olfactory artwork that evokes the sense of smell.

As life seems threatened while the cathedral forest burns, the artist-perfumer unveils a vegetal fragrance with notes of smoky underbrush, crafted from the everlasting flower, hinting at a glimmer of hope in this darkened landscape.

[ OLFACTORY ART / ARTISTIC APPROACH OF THE ARTIST-PERFUMER ]

Do you hear the canary's song? 2024 / Olfactory art installation on floor 1 perfume, mixed materials By Alexandra Bachand Visual artist and perfumer MBAS Collective Exhibition STROLL IN THE FOREST -

Through its form and message, the artwork makes a historical reference to the canaries used in coal mines. In the 19th century, groups of miners would bring a canary in a cage when descending into coal mines. The bird served as an early indicator of air toxicity. When the canary stopped singing, it was time for the miners to evacuate the area.

Bachand’s installation questions the fragility of life in the face of forest destruction due to increasingly frequent and devastating fires. These events, central to current global concerns, threaten the survival of many species. Can we still hear the song of birds in these natural environments devastated by the new ecological disasters contaminating the land?

I present olfactory art installations that elevate perfume as a major medium I shape, generally supporting a form of symbolic expression. The visual component is a metaphor serving the perfume.

I explore the connections between botany, time, history, and memory. Here, I address the theme of the burning forest in response to the painting Bois Brûlé (1952) by Jean Paul Lemieux, which evokes a deep sense of solitude. Even though we know that flora is regenerative, the absence of life in this landscape suggests endangered fauna.

I wanted to establish a twofold dialogue with this painting, with its echo reverberating 72 years later.

In the creation process of my works, I question, in multiple ways, the perception of scent and its emergence of feelings, so as to weave connections between the accords I construct. The evocative power of a scent lies in the accuracy of the story it underpins.

What impact does the scent of a forest evoke in us if it carries connotations of dead leaves and burned, even charred wood?

The installation speaks to the value of the ephemeral, in the face of a cathedral forest burning, emitting notes of Japanese cedar, oud wood, everlasting flowers, and oakmoss, breaking the impermanence of time and life. Do we still hear the presence of birds in this natural sanctuary consumed by flames? To emphasize the urgency, I create an imbalance between two senses: smell and hearing. In this immersive installation, should we listen to the dome? Hearing is confronted by the power of smell.

By questioning whether we hear the canary’s song while the installation offers the scent of a burned forest as an answer, a confusion arises between our senses.

The historical symbol of the mining canary, whose fragile lungs once warned miners to leave before the air became toxic and potentially lethal, expresses that time is running out.

Smell is a vital sense that alerts us to danger. The scent of fire triggers an alarm. If the bird has already left the scene, humanity has the opportunity to do things differently. Do you hear the canary’s song? is a reminder that the forest is burning, and it is urgent to act.

Additionally, I present the olfactory wall artwork Per fumum sylvestre (2024), exhibited at the L’Espace Dialogue gallery, at the museum entrance.
—Alexandra