This weekend marks the start of one of the gloomiest months of the year, with its mix of warmth and chill. In Montreal, we find solace in the comfort of our apartments, go for walks while gazing into the distance, and warm our hearts by starting this weekend to drink hot chocolate, just like during the Christmas holidays.
Have a great November!
A regular-price ticket is $20 CAD, and one ticket grants admission to both exhibitions
PHI presents two fall–winter exhibitions: FOI OU FEU (Turn or Burn) by Jean-François Bouchard and HYMNES (Anthems) by Stephanie Comilang, on view from October 28, 2026, through March 14, 2027.
Both exhibitions this season are centered around the work of a single artist each, and it is through the collaboration between the curators and the artists that spaces are created just beyond reality—where we touch the heart and where our breath quickens.
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FOI OU FEU (TURN OR BURN), JEAN-FRANÇOIS BOUCHARD
Jean-François Bouchard / Turn or Burn (detail), 2026 / 7-channel video installation / 10 min (loop) / Courtesy of the artist.
Jean-François Bouchard organizes the absolutist thinking of street preachers into rhythms and concentric circles to address issues of black, white, and moral division in Western society. It is a documentary work that breaks down the screaming evangelism—and the men who lend their voices to it—into tiny fragments.
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HYMNES (ANTHEMS), STEPHANIE COMILANG
Stephanie Comilang, Search for Life II (still image), 2025. Joint commission by TBA21, the Sharjah Art Foundation, and the Vega Foundation, with support from Callie’s Berlin. Courtesy of the artist.
Stephanie Comilang’s
work spans two buildings and features five video installations created over the course of her 10-year career.
She describes it as “documentary science fiction,” and the way she films and edits the images in her videos and installations is reminiscent of *2001: A Space Odyssey* that had been hit square in the face by a reality TV episode.
November 5–7: The Great Montreal Tasting 2026
Three days to travel from vineyard to vineyard in the heart of the Port of Montreal.
The largest wine event in Eastern Canada will take place November 5–7, 2026, at the Grand Quai in the Port of Montreal: three days of meetings with hundreds of winemakers, tastings, and private import sales, featuring a VIP evening on November 5 for SAQ Inspire members.
A burlesque bloodbath that blends thrills and bursts of laughter.
A 90-minute burlesque show that parodies horror movie classics, presented at the National in Montreal from November 5 to December 6, 2026. Recommended for ages 18 and up, the show combines dance numbers, sketches, and dark humor.
A Nightmare on Strip Street – Montreal
5 November 2026 19:30 + more dates
Le National
November 8: POCKET ALTAR WORKSHOP AT MY FRIEND FRANKIE’S PLACE
The days are getting darker and darker leading up to the winter solstice, and November is one of the longest months of the year—one of the most melancholic, one of the most liminal. To keep a little (esoteric) love with us all year round, and to practice gratitude and keep our (many) loved ones close to our hearts, we’re going to make ourselves a “pocket altar.”
To reserve a spot for the workshop, click here.
November 8: Lithomancy Workshop
To spend the end of fall connected to our ancestors and to nature—which takes on a slightly melancholy and dramatic air in November—we’ll learn to read the future in stones during a workshop led by Lumos Oracle.
Immerse yourself in a biennial where video games and art come together to move and provoke thought.
The 8th Elektra Biennial (F(R)ICTION: ART AND GAMES) is being held at the Arsenal d’Art Contemporain in Saint-Henri and features some forty playable art video games exploring nostalgia, activism, identity, and emotion. Exhibition runs from October 15 to November 15, 2026; open Wed.–Fri. 11 a.m.–9 p.m. and Sat.–Sun. 10 a.m.–7 p.m. (last admission 1 hour before closing).
CHIHARU SHIOTA: THE QUIVERINGS OF THE SOUL AT THE MONTREAL MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS
$32 for ages 26 and older, $16 on Wednesday evenings / Free for ages 25 and younger, members of Indigenous communities, people with disabilities, and their companions
This fall, starting September 26, 2026, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts is hosting a retrospective of Chiharu Shiota’s work—her first in North America. Chiharu Shiota was present for the unveiling of this exhibition, which reads like a diary of the soul—she wove all the installations herself, on-site.
Chiharu Shiota, a Japanese artist who studied art in Berlin—alongside the iconic Marina Abramović—began her career in painting before moving on to performance, sculpture, and installation. Yet throughout her work, she continues to explore the dichotomy between body and soul, presence and absence, and humanity’s intangible connections.
His performance works, including the visceral *Becoming Painting* (1994) and the sublime short film *Bathroom* (1999), are featured at the beginning of the exhibition. Also on view are his sculptures, drawings, and sets created for theater and opera.
Through the works, we move from the physical to the poetic tribulations and emotional installations for which the artist is best known today.
The exhibition, which Chiharu Shiota simply compares to her own life, is a true retrospective in red and black of the artist’s work over the past 30 years—and a must-see this fall.
In addition to the exhibition, the Museum’s Cinema will screen films selected by the artist;
- BOY MEETS GIRL (1984) by Leos Carax / Sunday, September 27, 12:00 p.m.
- DOGVILLE (2003) by Lars Von Trier / Sunday, October 25, 12:00 p.m.
- THEATER OF THOUGHT (2022) by Werner Herzog / Sunday, December 6, 12:00 p.m.
FALL EXHIBITIONS AT THE DARLING FOUNDRY
La Fonderie Darling is presenting two fall exhibitions—“APRÈS LA PLUIE, LA BOUE” by Christopher Varady-Szabo and “SOLAR LAMENTATION” by Shanie Tomassini.
AFTER THE RAIN, THE MUD is a monumental woodland installation exploring the joy of creation and the concept of humanity.
SOLAR LAMENTATION is an exhibition that places alchemical sculptures under the blazing sun.
Have a great weekend!
