Pussy Riot’s art and activism will take centre stage in Montreal
MAC and POP Montreal present exhibition and live show featuring Russian activist art collective
Pussy Riot is coming to Montreal, and they are bringing punk rock with them. The famed Russian feminist protest art collective are at the centre of a series of events presented by the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (MAC) and POP Montreal. The lineup includes an exhibition and a live show in a blend of art and social commentary.
The exhibition Velvet Terrorism: Pussy Riot’s Russia will open to the public at the MAC’s temporary location in Place Ville Marie on Oct. 25. Hundreds of photos and video recordings charting a decade’s worth of anti-Putin protest actions will be showcased.
“I feel it's important that museums and the MAC in particular reflect not only the art world, but the world,” said MAC exhibition curator and general director John Zeppetelli, who delayed another exhibition he had planned in order to present Velvet Terrorism.
A conference featuring Pussy Riot’s Maria (Masha) Alyokhina in conversation with Icelandic artist and curator of Velvet Terrorism’s original Reykjavik exhibition, Ragnar Kjartansson, will be held at Le Gesù on the exhibit’s opening day. The conference will be moderated by Zeppetelli.
The exhibition is retrospective yet comes to a head in light of Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine, which began in 2022. “There is such a tragic rise in fascism all over the world,” said Zeppetelli. “We're also now in the midst of another tragic conflict in the Middle East.”
Formed in Moscow in 2011, Pussy Riot fluctuates between 10 and 20 members and is famous for its bold protests and provocative punk lyrics challenging the Russian regime.
“The show documents ten years of very creative activism with balaclavas, brightly colored dresses and brightly colored stockings,” said Zeppetelli. “They really have this wonderful trademark [...] There's something playful, there's something humorous. They're nonviolent, but they're kind of menacing.”
Indeed, the playfulness comes with seriousness and real risk. In 2012, three of Pussy Riot’s members—Alyokhina, Nadezhda (Nadya) Tolokonnikova and Yekaterina (Kat) Samutsevich—were charged with hooliganism and sentenced to two years in prison for performing an anti-Putin protest song in Moscow’s Christ the Savior Cathedral. The performance itself had lasted 45 seconds.
In 2018, Pyotr Verzilov, Pussy Riot member and husband to Tolokonnikova, was “poisoned” with a Novichok nerve agent, said Zeppetelli. The MAC website has also faced hacking attempts since announcing the exhibition.
“These are courageous people who pay for their opinions with their bodies and their own incarceration,” said Zeppetelli. “They invite everybody into antifascist action through their courage. One of their big mantras is that anyone can be Pussy Riot.”
On Oct. 26 at 5:30 p.m., Alyokhina and Zeppetelli will offer a guided tour of the exhibition, which continues through March 10, 2024. Tickets can be found on the MAC website.
On Nov. 1, Pussy Riot will lead off the North American leg of their tour “Riot Days” with a live performance at the Rialto Theatre. The concert is co-presented by the MAC and POP Montreal. A “significant portion” of proceeds will be going to the Ukrainian Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital. Tickets can be reserved here.
