Merry House . Citizen place of memory . Magog (Québec)

In collaboration with the Magog Historical Society, the Merry House’s first temporary exhibition will focus on workers in Magog’s textile industry and will feature the stories of former workers. The textile industry played an important role in the development of the City of Magog, from its beginnings in the early 1880s until its closure in the early 2000s. Numerous Magog residents worked at Dominion Textile. This story unfolds through the eyes of the working class and their personal stories.

"As an artist, I believe that nothing is more symbolic and strong than putting his art for his community or his history. As a perfumer, I had the honor to create an olfactory installation in the form of a diptych, presented in a temporary 3 years exhibition on the theme: My life at the Textile.

The perfume "Hymn to the weavers" is intended to infuse an olfactory and affective citizen memory by paying tribute to the workers of the former city's cotton factory. In my research, I collected impressions and memories of former workers and citizens in my Moleskine. Strong notions emerged from these exchanges: the importance of emphasizing hard work, willingness and pride, the very essence of the weaver. From these touching encounters came also a poem that I wrote to explain the olfactory narrative intention, for those who wove the history of the region. It is inscribed on the inside of an artist's notebook, with an old photo of workers in the first part of the glass diptych, like a precious artifact.

The scent is found in the second part of the wall installation. One can guess its presence by a nose icon followed by a text indicating to approach, to press a button and to smell. The ozonic head note recalls the proximity of the hydroelectric dam, the main engine of the plant. The heart notes, around a chord on wet hay, recall the smell of wet and quilted raw cotton. The base notes are heavy and warm, like the ambient air and the deafening noises that reigned at the factory.

Having founded my family in Magog and originally from the region, I proudly wear this story, since some members of my father's family worked at the Textile before it closed. I hope to honor them today."
- Alexandra Bachand

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Hymn to the weavers (poem paired with perfume)

Olfactory stopover: a moment to pay tribute to the weavers. Like an argentic photo of bygone times. Perfume of labour and deserved pride. A complex human scent; as intricate as weaving fabrics from hundreds of interlaced cotton threads.
A perfume created as an hymn to all the textile workers, these women and men who have single-handedly woven the history of the region.

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