The English Pug and the French Poodle
| The English Pug and the French Poodle | |
|---|---|
The English Pug in 2013 The French Poodle in 2013 | |
 | |
| Artist | Marc Andre J. Fortier |
| Medium | Bronze sculpture |
| Location | Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| 45°30′16″N 73°33′27″W / 45.50452°N 73.55738°WCoordinates: 45°30′16″N 73°33′27″W / 45.50452°N 73.55738°W | |
The English Pug and the French Poodle, also known as The two Snobs, is a privately owned outdoor 2013 art installation with two bronze sculptures by Canadian artist Marc Andre J. Fortier, installed at 500 Place D'Armes in Montreal, in Quebec, Canada.[1] Standing in the heart of Old-Montreal, the diptych evokes, with humour, the cultural discords[2] that used to prevail between the French and English Canadians. Inspired by the historical site of the building, the novel Two Solitudes by Hugh MacLennan and the parody of the Commedia dell’arte, the artist decided to express in his own way, this historical fact. For this, Fortier’s intentionally divided the piece in two clear segments to accentuate the distance over the two parties. Facing away from each other on opposite sides of the building and wearing a snobby theatrical nose mask, both characters stand on they’re ground and face away from each other on opposite sides of the building.
On the South side corner of the tower, an Englishman, represented as a thin, elegant, pretentious man, wearing a grid pattern suit with a bow tie, firmly presses against his chest an English Pug and stares with condescendence at the Notre-Dame Basilica, symbol of the religious influence on the French Canadians. On the North side corner of the same tower, a Frenchwoman represented as a small, elegant, snotty lady, wearing a Coco Chanel suit, rubber zippered high heel shoe covers and an imitation Beret, firmly holds against her chest a French Poodle and stairs with discontent, at the Head Office of the Bank of Montreal, symbol of the English power. Both purebred dogs are attracted to each other but are kept by their masters to stay away and far apart.
- A bronze plate anchored beside each character states the storyline in both languages:
«THE ENGLISH PUG AND THE FRENCH POODLE»
A dashing looking English man, holding his pug, gives a superior stare at Notre-Dame Basilica, symbol of the religious influence on French Canadians.
210 feet away to the northern corner of the edifice, a woman in Chanel style suit, poodle against her, shoots an offended look to the Bank of Montreal’s head office, symbol of English power.
With their masters oblivious to each other, the two dogs on the alert already sniffed out the opportunity to unite.
The inspiration for this work was from the Commedia dell’arte and Two Solitudes from novelist
Hugh MacLennan, these two snobs set up an ironically touching scene of the cultural distance between English and French Canadians.
Marc A. J. Fortier, Artist
Title: «The English Pug and The French Poodle»
Artist: Marc Andre J. Fortier
Year: 2013 Type: Diptych, Medium: Bronze sculpture, Process: Lost-wax casting, Foundry: Atelier du Bronze, Inverness, Quebec
Dimensions of Man: 120 in X 32 in X 32 in (304 cm X 81 cm X 81 cm)
Dimensions of Woman: 118 in X 32 in X 32 in (300 cm X 81 cm X 81 cm)
Coordinates: 45˚ 30’ 16’’ N, 73˚ 33’ 25’’ W
References[]
- ^ "The English Pug and the French Poodle". Art Public Montréal. Retrieved 2017-08-11.
- ^ Bilefsky, Dan (2018-03-05). "In Montreal, a Berlin Wall of the Mind?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-05-24.
External links[]
Media related to The English Pug and the French Poodle at Wikimedia Commons
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