Public Artwork
A Thousand Kisses Deep
Artwork creator(s):
Pelletier, Éric
Text author(s):
Cohen, Leonard
Collaborator(s):
Bourgeois, Olivier; Martineau, Annie; Turgeon, Amélie
Installation year:
2010 Description:
The installation consists of a gigantic glass prism with a rectangular base, which is split in the middle to disclose a silky texture that longs to be touched. The rectangle is covered with letters through which we distinguish the excerpt of a text.
Text of the artwork:
You the live I’m
Turning you tricks
Odds your ditch are
I’m getting it fixed
Lefethereas toifallit’s
To real stay beat alive
Text theme:
Poetry, Sensual
Artwork theme:
The team from Éric Pelletier, architectes has designed a work of art that is masculine, strong, dark and subtly sensual, a reflection of the poet who inspired it. Leonard Cohen's A Thousand Kisses Deep / Dans les profondeurs de mille baisers evokes thoughts about the man and his poetry, but especially on the depth and mystery of rich artistic production.
History:
From May 18 to October 31, 2010, in the entrance hall of the Grande Bibliothèque, Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec (BAnQ) will be hosting the exhibition Architectures en vers, which consists of five architectural installations inspired by poetry. These installations were created by collectives of well-known and up-and-coming architects working with glass artists. The exhibition is presented as part of the “Montréal, 2010 City of Glass” program, under the direction of the Board of Montreal Museum Directors.
Event date(s):
2010 Note(s):
A Thousand Kisses Deep
The ponies run, the girls are young,
The odds are there to beat.
You win a while, and then it’s done –
Your little winning streak.
And summoned now to deal
With your invincible defeat,
You live your life as if it’s real,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.
I’m turning tricks, I’m getting fixed,
I’m back on Boogie Street.
You lose your grip, and then you slip
Into the Masterpiece.
And maybe I had miles to drive,
And promises to keep:
You ditch it all to stay alive,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.
And sometimes when the night is slow,
The wretched and the meek,
We gather up our hearts and go,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.
Confined to sex, we pressed against
The limits of the sea:
I saw there were no oceans left
For scavengers like me.
I made it to the forward deck.
I blessed our remnant fleet –
And then consented to be wrecked,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.
I’m turning tricks, I’m getting fixed,
I’m back on Boogie Street.
I guess they won’t exchange the gifts
That you were meant to keep.
And quiet is the thought of you,
The file on you complete,
Except what we forgot to do,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.
And sometimes when the night is slow,
The wretched and the meek,
We gather up our hearts and go,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.
The ponies run, the girls are young,
The odds are there to beat…
Artist's biography:
Éric Pelletier
Author's biography:
Leonard Cohen Document(s):
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