Free
About the series
In its Special Guest series, the MMFA invites leading specialists to offer their cutting-edge view on the arts and museums.
About the speakers
Born in 1977 in Tehran, Iran, Abbas Akhavan now lives and works in Montreal and Berlin. His multidisciplinary practice ranges from site-specific ephemeral installations to drawing, video, sculpture and performance. His research is influenced by the places in which he works—their histories and architectures, as well as the economies and inhabitants that shape them. A central and recurring theme in his work are the garden and the spaces and life that lie just outside the home, such as backyards, public parks and other domesticated landscapes.
Anne-Marie St-Jean Aubre is the Curator of Quebec and Canadian Contemporary Art (1945 to Today) and holds the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Chair at the MMFA. As Curator of Contemporary Art at the Musée d’art de Joliette, where she worked from 2017 to 2023, she oversaw many solo and group exhibitions featuring women artists, Indigenous artists, and artists from diverse backgrounds.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Location: Maxwell Cummings Auditorium, 1379-A Sherbrooke Street West
Please note that seat reservations are held until the beginning of the event. Once the activity has started, any unoccupied seats will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This event is the keynote lecture of The Universities Art Association of Canada (UAAC) annual conference held at Concordia University on October 13-15, 2026.
This lecture is part of Beyond Wilderness, a two-year series of public events examining landscape and identity in Canadian art organized by Gabrielle Moser, Research Chair and Director of the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Institute for Studies in Canadian Art at Concordia University.
Major Patrons
Fondation de la Chenelière and Fondation Ariane Riou et Réal Plourde
Patron
The Molson Foundation
Public Partners
Canada Council for the Arts, Conseil des arts de Montréal, Gouvernement du Québec
