À L'ÉCHELLE DE LA VILLE | David Manseau

The Grey Scale project is a series of interventions on the facades of abandoned buildings in the city of Montreal. By using shades of grey paint on the surface of boarded windows, David Manseau creates a visual pattern that echoes the photographic reference tool known as the grey scale. Following the interventions on the facade of the buildings, he documents through photographs the evolution from their abandoned state to their restoration through renovations or reconstruction. He considers the building facades just like photographic paper, as surfaces engraving information, the facades accumulating traces of history from the time of their abandonment. His work looks at urban architecture as a pretext to reflect on the mechanics of the production and the interpretation of the photographic image.


After studying photography, art history and visual arts, David Manseau is currently completing a Masters of Visual Arts and Multimedia at the University of Quebec in Montreal. With the help of different mediums (photography, performance, video and installation) he has developed a multidisciplinary form of photography. Throughout the last few years, he has received many scholarships of excellence and academic research. He lives and works in Montreal and his work has been shown in Quebec, Toronto, as well as in Italy.

Click here to view the Grey Scale project map.

Image:
#2000, avenue Viger. Montréal, building, gouache, graffiti, 2010-11