Yes, I did not speak to that in my presentation.
Under a contract with the Department of Canadian Heritage, we take works that were used in the “Unusual Passages” project and we reinstall them elsewhere and circulate them. The circulation of artworks is something we can increasingly work with, because there is a demand for that.
We brought four works into the region, two in Ottawa and two in Gatineau, and “Myth and Evidence” is one of them. In fact, we went to see it yesterday — the unicorn — and she's doing very well.
You asked me about the impacts of our projects. We aren't always next to the works, of course. Citizens and passersby can view them, and they are as autonomous as possible. According to the comments we receive, the impact is really on quality of life. That is what I noticed since the foundation of EXMURO 10 years ago. If there is no public art, what is there in our public spaces? What poetry can there be?
We must not underestimate the impact looking at something for pure pleasure can have on people, something that is not publicity and is not trying to sell you anything. That amuses people and reassures them. They are simply happy to see something that surprises them. We play a lot on that relationship people have with free art. Those are the repercussions we observe most often.
Thanks to the millions of photographs that are taken, we benefit from high visibility. It's quite phenomenal, and means that these art works travel virtually throughout the world. Our reality is very linked to images. It's always a good thing for a city or municipality to project an image of openness, daring and originality.