On Notre-Dame street, west of Atwater (near St-Henri), you'll find Perfide, a small boutique-gallery selling and showcasing the works of local artisans and artists. I spoke to José, one half of a team that owns Perfide (the other half being Julia - his girlfriend) at the boutique this week. No last names were given. That is how he signs his films he explained to me. No last names. José and Julia. They are a team; there is no longer an I, it is now "we".
He gave me a tour and explained that the boutique houses over 50 artists, fashion designers, graphic artists, mostly friends of his as well as a multimedia (audio-visual) collective which makes their work available on a website called VacheMorte.com.
The boutique opened 6 months ago, but he and his friends have been making films for a while. They are short films which run from 5 - 20 minutes long and are usually made with his friends, featuring his friends. As we talked, José logged on to vachemorte.com and showed me how the site worked and how to access the films. The designers are also showcased via the Perfide section.
I asked where the name Perfide comes from (perfide is French for perfidy). He told me it means malicious, malice, not very nice (which I already knew because I looked it up in the dictionary ; the OED also describes it as deceitfulness, untrustworthy ; it can also mean treachery). He and the artists are influenced by the horror - fantasy genre. He said, if you look around the shop you'll see monsters. Indeed, the monster does show up as a motif : on prints, t-shirts, dolls, toys, ...
He introduced me to a bit of the art in Perfide: Dresses (which look a bit like frocks or tunics) by Supayana who he said recently won an award; T-shirts and canvases by Patrick (no last names) who uses silkscreen techniques. T-shirts will be made in a limited quantity - a series of 4 for example - with an original print ; bags by Roadkill; graffiti inspired art by AXE; canvases by MTAF (more than a friend); bags by Sarcastik; painted toys (trucks, ambulances) by Some;
Damned Dollies; underwear; copies of Worn (the zine of used and recycled fashions); graphic books and what I thought was a handkerchief but which José said was a patch with "I heart bikes" on it (and now sold) by Dada Pomo - not to be confused with Dada Porno... and much more.
José explained that many garments are hand made and use either recycled or organic fibres.
Patrick prints his art on t-shirts from American Apparel. The price range varies. I saw a canvas for 74 $ as well as one for 400 $.
Perfide is located at 4217 Notre-Dame W. Montreal, Quebec.
http://www.vachemorte.com/
Generally opened Tuesday to Sunday: 12-6
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