Gallery Parfois - Saint Laurent’s Hidden Gem
It’s a mild November afternoon and I’ve come to visit Gallery Parfois for the first time (and a day prior to their latest vernissage, no less). Arriving at 4064 Saint-Laurent, I make my way up to the gallery, which is nestled above several small shops. Upon entering, I am not only greeted by Brooke, the gallery’s wonderful curator, but also by a surprise guest– Severan. Severan is the black, live-in gallery cat who bunts against my legs as I speak to Brooke. Though I’ve been to many of the city’s galleries before, I can’t say that I’ve ever been met with such an inviting presence, both from Brooke and Severan.
As I compose myself, recovering from Severan’s cuteness, Brooke and I make our way to a table, where she pulls up two chairs for us. For a modest space, I am taken by the number of paintings Brooke has managed to display on the walls. I am equally impressed by the diversity of the paintings, those of which belong to Nigerian-Canadian artist Derek Bassey’s exhibition titled Normal People, which opened to the public on November 30. Brooke tells me that this space has been grandfathered throughout the years, serving a variety of purposes: from a barber shop to the office space of Snap Magazine, a fashion and art publication that is nostalgic for some Montrealers, especially those who were around the city circa 2008.
Derek Bassey - Normal People
I begin our chat by asking what drew Brooke to open this hidden gem of a gallery, while gazing at Bassey’s intimate paintings that line the walls. “It’s funny,” she begins. “It kind of happened organically. I have a background in photography and I was doing a lot of photo shoots, and had rented this space with some other people. I began experimenting and hosted some exhibitions, and it went really, really well. There was a lot of positive feedback and I really enjoyed it. I thought, ‘I'm going to keep doing this’, and just realized that if this was going to become something, it needed to be a bit more formalized.”
At the start of the pandemic in 2020, Brooke made the difficult decision to close the gallery to the public. “At that time, we were doing live drawing nights, doing exhibitions and we were really growing,” she recalls. “Something that I had considered was to create more of an online platform, but I just feel like there's something to having a physical community.” She recalls keeping touch with both those who attended the gallery’s drawing nights and the artists, but notes that attempting to introduce an online space “just didn't feel the same. We couldn't really replicate what we do online, so we hung in there and hoped we’d see everyone soon.”
The gallery’s beloved drawing nights made a much-appreciated return a few months ago, keeping the gallery very busy, especially during the warmer months. “Now that we’ve reopened, it feels like there's even more of a community,” she says. “I feel, perhaps, that people were just really missing that. Also, since a lot of other areas of life have become online, just having physical spaces to go to…it's something special.”
Now that the gallery is bustling once again, there have been numerous successful exhibitions taking place. While Brooke explained to me that the colder months tend to present a lull in visitor activity, exhibitions and events in the summer have been attracting more visitors. One particular exhibition that took place back in June performed remarkably well and remains one of Brooke’s favourite exhibitions that the gallery has hosted. Titled Sorry for my Spelling Mistakes (On Dyslexia), Manitoba-based artist Taylor Soos, through vibrant paintings, was able to capture the firsthand experience of living with dyslexia, while celebrating neurodiversity among creative minds.
“I had worked with [Soos] before on a totally different subject. In this exhibit, dyslexia was something that was very prevalent in his work,” she explained. “For example, he included a lot of misspelt words that were backwards. I just thought it might be worth exploring. And after this exhibition, I really learned just how prevalent dyslexia is, though it's not always talked about.”
She recalls the exhibition’s vernissage being flooded with visitors, namely families. “There were a lot of parents who came with their children, which was very sweet. It was very touching. A lot of people wanted to talk to the artist about creativity and dyslexia, so that exhibition was a really powerful one for me.”
Taylor Soos - Sorry for my Spelling Mistakes (On Dyslexia)
When asked about her overall ambitions for the gallery, she explained that, as an independent curator, she enjoys presenting socially conscious exhibitions to the public, particularly ones similar to Soos’ exhibition. Now formally registered as a nonprofit, she hopes to get more individuals involved at the gallery. “Now that we’re a nonprofit, we’re able to access more resources, so I can get more people involved and make sure that they’re compensated.”
Now that the gallery has bounced back from the pandemic, the main goal is to continue to present a rotation of unique artworks every few weeks, while also hosting regular drawing nights. So, if you find yourself in need of some art therapy (which helps greatly for those struggling with low moods during the winter months), then there’s perhaps no better space to visit than Gallery Parfois.
Leaving the gallery, I take one last glance around at the humble space, with its worn hardwood floors and freshly painted white walls. I have been to my fair share of galleries across the city, but there is a genuine warmth that sticks with me after visiting this one. This is one Montreal jewel that I won’t soon forget — and will certainly return to very soon.