For its spring exhibitions, PHI has featured two contemporary artists whose works inhabit the liminal space between the real and the unreal, creating a third reality in which one happily loses oneself.
The exhibitions open on Thursday, April 23, 2026, and will be on view at PHI through September 13, 2026.
Come see, Lies Lies by Paola Pivi
Paola Pivi’s exhibition, presented by PHI and guest curator Kanika Anand of Calgary Contemporary, is half fairy tale and half satirical installation of the modern world.
On the walls, pairs of shoes—one worn, one new—of all sizes and styles (sad flip-flops, stiletto boots, white Saint Laurent sneakers circa Hedi Slimane, slippers…). The series began with a commission from the Andy Warhol Museum in 2022, because the father of pop art was also a shoe designer. Here, the shoes are almost unsettling, displayed on the wall like Cinderella’s glass slipper duplicated in every style.
You can also slip into the middle of a pile of colorful mattresses, like the ones the Princess and the Pea lay on in the children’s story. They are made of velvet and suspended—you can lie down between the ones below and those above by wearing gloves and plastic shoe covers.
In a separate room, a small metal house has been constructed, and inside, images flash rapidly across TV screens. A voice, speaking first in English and then in French, states lies as if they were facts: We know everything—Genocide is impossible—ICE is a well-known child protective service—No lies were ever told about Covid.
The exhibition is barely explained, and you can wander through Paola Pivi’s semi-plastic world as if in a 1990s conceptual pop art exhibition. It brings to mind fairy tales, the satirical tirades of characters from Don DeLillo’s novels, 24-hour TV channels, social media trolls, and vacation postcards. You might also just wonder: what is this sculpture doing to my reptilian brain?
Other Worlds by Jakob Kudsk Steensen
Jakob Kudsk Steensen’s “other worlds” consist of six major works created by the artist over the past ten years. The Danish artist prepares each of his works through in-depth ecological research, and each of his virtual “worlds” is rooted in a changing environment: Bora Bora, volcanic seabeds, geothermal springs.
The artist’s sound and video installations utilize the jerky movements of video games; visitors can wander through unreal worlds in virtual reality or by sitting in front of reanimated videos. The underwater scenes are digitized.
To address the topic of tourism, Kudsk Steensen created a video exploring an abandoned idyllic tropical resort that moves like a 2000s computer game, which we watch, feeling vaguely nauseous, while sitting on a lounge chair.
Each new work we immerse ourselves in is like a piece of a dystopian, ultra-colorful universe that serves as a sublimating mirror of our world in decline. And as time goes on, these other worlds merge with reality—and it becomes more and more beautiful.
Practical Information
Where? At PHI
Come see, Lies Lies at 407 Saint-Pierre Street
Autres Mondes at 451 Saint-Jean Street and 456 Saint-Jean Street
When? Both exhibitions run from April 23, 2026, to September 13, 2026
How much? Regular-price tickets are $20 CAD, and one ticket is valid for both exhibitions
For more information, visit the PHI website—here