Visitors find art among apples at Hudson orchard
A Hudson apple orchard is hosting a new open-air art installation this fall featuring eight larger-than-life human figures among the trees.
Les Êtres Moléculaires, an installation by local artist Sonia Haberstich, is free to see at Le Verger de Hudson Bio until mid-october. It features transparent laser-cut silhouettes of men, women, and children with brightly coloured dots made of cast fluorescent pigments and epoxy. During the day, the figures add a touch of whimsy to the orchard. After sunset, they are illuminated in black light to create an eerily magical scene.
Haberstich said the dots are intended to evoke a molecular, cellular vision of life that is a little bit scientific and a little bit hallucinatory. The molecules suggest change, transition, altered states of consciousness, and the transition from life to death.
“We're all the same. We're all made of cells,” Haberstich said. “Everybody wants to separate themselves from everybody else, but actually we're all the same.”
While the molecules may seem inspired by the recent health crisis, the idea for the exhibit actually came just a few weeks before the first pandemic lockdown last year. Haberstich had lived through the loss of both parents within five years, before facing a health crisis of her own with a treatment that promised only a 50-50 chance of success.
Beginning with pen and ink, and then moving into other media, Haberstich began creating “happy cells,” channelling hope through her art. In the end, the treatment worked. It was at the close of the exhibit of those illustrations that she had a vision of the next evolution, which would become Les Êtres Moléculaires.
After the exhibit closes at the Verger de Hudson, Haberstich intends to take the show on the road, installing the figures in new environments, from forests to broken-down buildings, throughout Quebec and perhaps even beyond.
“Depending on the way they're shown it will make a new story. It's an evolving project that will continue for a few more years at least,” she said. “These pieces are a bit magical. It's interesting what people get out of it. Everybody makes their own story.”
These pieces are a bit magical. It's interesting what people get out of it. Everybody makes their own story.
The exhibit continues until Oct. 9 at 839 Main Rd., and can be viewed during the day during the orchard's business hours, or at night on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from 6 to 9 p.m. Haberstich will be present during the evening showings.
The orchard closes for apple picking at 5 p.m., but owner Annick Joanisse said the best time to go see the art installation is after dark.
“The nighttime visits are really special because that's where it really comes to life. The black lights and the glow from the molecules is really nice. It's very cool.”