August, 2025

Trees are back at the Canal, exhibition at Soulanges Canal Park

After almost 60 years of loyal service, the Soulanges Canal bowed out in 1958 to make way for the St. Lawrence Seaway.

SYLLAD’s 12 works, placed in situ in 3 museum arches along its route, demonstrate that after all these years of industrial exploitation, the Canal and its surroundings have once again become a natural place for the whole community to enjoy. Its flora and fauna have reclaimed their rights through a few industrial remnants, while offering an immersive environment conducive to artistic and heritage interpretation.

Through the creation of its works, SYLLAD illustrates this state of affairs and bears witness to the transformation of landscapes in favor of nature’s resilience.

The proposed experience goes beyond simple contemplation: it invites visitors to reflect on the relationship between industrial history and ecological resilience. A majority of the works bear the marks of time, as they are inspired by archival images integrated into the surrounding current landscape, reinforcing the link between art and place.

Rather than a purely informative discourse, the art acts as an emotional medium, encouraging visitors to reflect on and experience the place in an intuitive, multi-sensory way.

The presentation of the exhibition is made possible thanks to the Conseil des arts et lettres du Québec’s Présentation d’œuvres dans l’espace public ou dans des lieux atypiques program, which aims to support artistic projects conceived specifically for the places where they will be presented, works in situ, or productions designed for presentation in venues that are unusual for the discipline or the public.

The exhibition Les arbres sont de retour au Canal (Trees are back on the Canal) is installed along the Soulanges Canal at the following locations until November 5, 2025:

To complement the exhibition on the banks of the Soulanges canal, SYLLAD offers you a behind-the-scenes look at the project at the CACVS gallery.

Come and discover the creative process behind this project, which includes archival image research, photographic scouting along the canal, illustration tests, the process of selecting the final works, and some previously unpublished works…

Lesarbres sont de retour au Canal, les coulississeraexhibitionwill beon display at the CACVS gallery until November 5, 2025, during MRC de Vaudreuil-Soulanges opening hours: Monday to Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Friday, 8:30 a.m. to noon.

About SYLLAD

SYLLAD is an artistic duo formed by visual artist Sylvie Rochette and artist-photographer Ladislas Kadyszewski. After many years of practice in their respective fields, they chose to work together because of the complementarity of their practices, values and sensibilities, as well as their interest in tackling themes that question our presence in the world. The tree becomes the central symbol of this multidisciplinary approach.

SYLLAD warmly thanks the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec for their financial support, as well as Bloom’s Urban Exhibition Furnishings, the Parc du canal de Soulanges, the Conseil des arts et de la culture de Vaudreuil-Soulanges, the Société d’histoire de Coteau-du-Lac, the Société de recherches historiques de Pointe-des-Cascades, the Musée régional de Vaudreuil-Soulanges and the Centre d’archives de Vaudreuil-Soulanges for their invaluable collaboration. Many thanks to all!