12 November 2004 12am - 12am

Join us at Mercer Union where Atelier Wundershön Peplum (AWP) and guest musicians Martin Arnold and Matthias Delplanque will perform live, followed by a discussion forum to launch their Spring 2005 TorontoTroll project at Mercer Union.

AWP is a Paris-based interdisciplinary collective whose practice integrates visual arts, design, music, architecture, and landscape design. AWP has been invited to Toronto by Mercer Union and the Consulate General of France in Toronto to extend their exploration of nighttime urban mobility to a large North American city. Already successfully initiated in Copenhagen, Rome and other European cities, the Protocole Troll invites local artists and professionals concerned with urban mobility to actively collaborate in the creation of unique, participatory, multimedia art projects and outdoor performances.

In spring 2005 AWP will return to Mercer Union for a one-month residency to continue the Protocol Troll experiment in Toronto. As a starting point, they intend to transform Mercer Union’s front gallery into an urban mobility research lab.

The project is curated by Catherine Sicot and generously supported by the Association française d’action artistique (AFAA) through their Carte jeune génération programme and by the Consulate General of France in Toronto.

AWP will be represented on Friday, November 12th by Marc and Matthias Armengaud.

Marc and Matthias Armengaud are the founding members of the electronic post-jazz band &G, which evolved into the interdisciplinary collective AWP. Marc Armengaud (philosopher, artist) teaches urban sociology and creative writing at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure du Paysage de Versailles, and is a member of the editing board of Les Carnets du paysage. Matthias Armengaud (architect, artist) has exhibited paintings and drawings in France, Japan and Italy, and was awarded the Architecture Academy prize in 2000. Other members of AWP include: Alessandra Cianchetta (architect, landscape designer, critic), Adamo Demont (architect, artist), Arnaud Hirschauer (architect, musician), and Aurélien Masurel (architect, historian).

In 2004, the Troll Protocol has gathered over 100 creative professionals from 18 countries, including: Jean-Luc Brisson (artist, landscape designer: Paris); Rob Mazurek (musician: Manaus); Catherine Gfeller (artist: Paris); Joao Simoes (artist, architect: Lisbon); Per Henriksen (artist, designer: Copenhagen); Sari Myöhänen (designer, artist: Helsinki, Paris); and Matthieu Mevel (actor, playwright: Paris).

Martin Arnold is a Toronto-based musician with a Ph.D. in Composition from the University of Victoria. A creator of experimental improvisation, inside-out rock, and psychedelic jazz, he also composes music for classically trained musicians, which is performed nationally and internationally. Martin is also the author of a number of published critical texts, primarily on visual art.

Matthias Delplanque moved to sound experimentation and music after studying visual arts at Ecole des Beaux-arts Paris-Cergy. He has played deconstructed hip-hop and is now developing experimental dub. He is a member of the TrollSounds project and has performed in Europe with Rob Mazurek, &G, and Joao Simoes. This fall, he is a residency guest at Cormier Studio in Montreal as a continuation of his project “My room while I’m away”.

For more information on AWP, please visit: www.troll.fr.vu and www.awp.fr

WHERE:

Mercer Union 37 Lisgar St. Toronto, Ontario, Canada M6J 3T3

t: 416 536 1519 e: info@mercerunion.org w: www.mercerunion.org

For media info please contact info@mercerunion.org