Artist collects stories for an ‘anti-tourism’ project
As part of his “anti-tourism” project, Saskatoon-based artist David LaRiviere wants to collect every sordid detail about some of the city’s lesser known, and far from glamorous, sites.
Using stories told by friends and strangers alike, he hopes to create an audio tour of the city that offers a different perspective than the perfectly lit images that appear on postcards. So far, he’s visited locales like a back alley and a Dumpster.
“The postcards we know are a kind of public relations, but nobody lives there. Nobody lives in this ideal place with the lights just so and cascading waterfalls and public parks,” he said. “We live in the city and we know the place we live in on complex social and political levels. This glossy image, while it may have a certain kind of appeal, ultimately it’s meaningless for those of us who live here.”
The audio-tour project, dubbed MKultraudio-Tours, is still in its early stages, but he’s been encouraged by the response. LaRiviere has completed four interviews, the first of which was with his friend Todd Emel.
Emel’s story took place in a back alley behind the Yard & Flagon, a place where he spent the night during the breakdown of his first marriage.
In addition to an audio interview, each story will be accompanied by an actual postcard, featuring an image of the chosen location. The image of concrete, peeling paint and an old, rolled-up carpet in the alley is juxtaposed with the text “Saskatoon, Canada!”
“I’m not doing this out of any agenda of civic pride or anything along those lines. What will be reflected will ultimately be charming in some cases, troubling in others,” he said.
“My hope is that in laying a text overtop of a site like this, that you wouldn’t think twice about, that it changes it forevermore. Once you have this story you look at that area and remember this other content. It imbues the mundane with something more interesting and special.”
His second interview was with someone who responded to an advertisement LaRiviere posted at the Roxy Theatre. In addition to physical ads, he also plans to take out a classified ad in hopes of broadening the audience and locations.
The project has no rules regarding who can contribute or what the story is about. The only requirements are that the story be associated with a public place and that the place is not a marquee location (for example: the Delta Bessborough).
LaRiviere conducts an interview with the storyteller in the actual location, with the goal of picking up ambient noise associated with the space.
All of his subjects so far have agreed to use their names, but he’s also willing to grant anonymity if that makes the participant more comfortable.
LaRiviere said the scope of the project is unlimited and he doesn’t see it having a specific destination or timeline. He eventually plans to create an online map so people can visit the spaces and hear the stories through their smartphones. He’s hoping to collect as many stories as possible.
Interested participants can contact LaRiviere through email to dlariviere.artist@gmail.com or by calling/texting 306-881-3077. He also encourages people to learn more about the project on Facebook or by following his Twitter feed @davidglariviere.
LaRiviere plans to work on a similar project in Victoria in 2018 as part of an artist’s residence at Open Space.