Centre PHI

J'ai été à l'exposition Sexe, web et data. Exposition intéressante. Beaucoup d'employés pour répondre à nos questions. J'ai trouvé cependant l'exposition un peu chère.

Lieu de référence dans le vieux Montréal pour une visite captivante au sein des nouvelles technologies et l'art numérique.

I recently visited the Phi Center for a “Habitat Sonore” music exhibition which came highly recommended to me. When we arrived, the gallery representative suggested we try a different music experience, "Program 2: Debute Dans" instead, as it featured more music and English lyrics (as opposed to French).

Upon entering, we were asked to remove our shoes and found a cozy setup with carpet, pillows, and calming lights. The first piece, Tanya Tagaq’s "Tongues, " featured intense throat singing and triggering themes, which left our group feeling anxious. The second part, a rainforest recording, didn't provide any relief as the sounds of flies and mosquitoes were discomforting. Overall, we were underwhelmed and disappointed by the experience.

Our disappointment mainly lies with the gallery representative, who recommended this exhibition as a relevant alternative to the show we came to see. When I left the experience, and shared my thoughts with the gallery representative, she admitted that she had actually not participated in the experience herself. This was particularly frustrating because we trusted her guidance. Additionally, I was not offered a sincere apology or a refund. Unfortunately, due to this negative experience, I cannot recommend the Phi Center.

***Last Minute

I wanted a unique date with my wife. My wife suggested attending Phi Center events.

We choose "Last Minute" experience/story.

Artists Claire Bardainne and Adrien Mundot created a futuristic experience. It starts with a story about life's cycles, then an amazing immersive experience about nature's power.

The carpeted, draped rectangle has a translucent screen in the centre that takes up 3/4 of the space and allows flow on both sides.

The room's emotions made some people close their eyes. After realising its purpose, I enjoyed it.

As a large group, it was fascinating to watch the room divide. Some kneel, others lie down. Others moved to the room on the other side of the screen and fully explored its 360 projections.

After this, it got better. The journey completed a circle.

It's refreshing to have places like Montreal's Phi Centre use art in new ways.

Thanks to the artist and Phi Center for sharing this art.

***Preparation tips for this event: Due to its length, the event starts at odd times (5: 40 PM, 7: 10 PM, etc.). It is not at our usual hour-and-half intervals. Arrive early to avoid missing the start since parking is always available in the old port. Luckily, there are many fun places to wait. Because the floor is art, I think you should take your shoes off before entering. Take pictures to remember the event.

Hope this helps.

Juste sorti de l’expérience “Horizon VR”. Exemple parfait de technologisme: l’art de mettre de la techno la ou ça ne sert à rien. Les sujets abordés sont intéressants mais les moyens utilisés sont très mauvais. Pire, du fait de la lourdeur des casques on sort totalement de l’expérience et au final nos n’apprenons vraiment pas grand chose. Très décevant, surtout au vu du prix!

This the show last minute was amazing! I felt like I was in another world. The only constructive criticism I have is it was in French. I think the whole French vs English thing has been politicized and that's disappointing.

Superbe salle pour voir un spectacle et des expositions. La salle de spectacle d'environ 300 personnes est parfaite. Le personnel y est fort sympathique. La seule petite amélioration que j'y verrais, c'est le temps d'attente au bar! Sinon au plaisir d'y retourner! - photo: spectacle Milk and bones

I went to the Last Minute exhibition and expected a lot based on the price tag it charged, yet it was a half hour experience of flashing strobe lights which gave me a horrible headache that lasted an hour afterwards. The sound effects were also devoid of any meaning and consisted of a monotone electronic beat. I truly feel scammed and do not recommend this exhibition at all.

This is regarding the ticketing system for Yayoi Kusama. Like many others i waited in line for over a half hour only to find that every single time I chose was ‘full’ even though it was showing as available. I tried at least 10 different time slots before giving up…really disappointed I was not able to get a ticket. Please look into improving your system.

This is not a review of what Centre PHI offers. This is only concerning the online ticketing system. Of course we are all looking forward to the Yayoi Kusama exhibition, and for the month of August, a random number system was assigned and they claim that whether you come early or not, it does not matter. However, I placed myself early in line online and I got a much smaller number than my friend who came in line later. It seems like their claim is not accurate and misleading. I tried already 2x to get tickets with no luck.

Also it's a huge waste of time because the website sometimes lets you know there are tickets at a certain time and when you click on it, it says it's full.

Vraiment pas au point, les graphiques sont de bases et 3 présentations sur 4 en anglais. Très déçu et très cher pour cette expérience.

Nous étions à Montréal pour quelques jours et nous voulions voir l’exposition de Yoyoi Kusama. Il était indiqué qu’il n’y avait plus de billets gratuits avant le 15 du mois prochain pour le parcours numéro 1, mais que nous pouvions payer pour le parcours numéro 3. Nous n’avons pas trop compris le principe des parcours et des billets gratuits versus ceux à payer, mais nous avons acheté les billets pour voir son exposition. Nous avons été très déçus lorsque nous sommes arrivés et que nous avons appris qu’en ayant payé environ 45$ par billet que nous n’avions pas le droit de voir son exposition complète (versus les billets gratuits!) et que nous avions seulement le droit de voir quelques toiles et les deux salles “Infinity Mirrored Rooms” où nous pouvions rester seul seulement 45 secondes minutées! Oui nous avions accès aux autres expositions du Centre Phi, mais très décevant quand tu payes de ne pas avoir accès à toute l’exposition versus quelqu’un qui a un billet gratuit non? ! Ça fait cher pour quelques toiles et deux fois 45 secondes quand c’est l’exposition que tu voulais voir!

L'expérience était exceptionnelle. Nous en avons eu pour notre argent. Le personnel était impeccable. Seul défaut, nous avions réservé pour plusieurs expositions. L'une d'elle était fermée le jour de notre visite sans avertissement. Nous devrons et allons y retourner pour la voir à un autre moment.

J'ai attendu plus de 1h sur la file pour accéder à la billetterie en ligne, tous ça pour recevoir un message que tout est complet. Grosse déception.

Des expositions innovantes, alliant art et technologie dans une ambiance immersive et feutrée. Tous les sens sont de la partie!

Waited a whole hour to get tickets for the Yayoi Kusama show (for the second time) finally got in, but the website is broken. There are still some available spots but there is no way to select any - and of course, nobody is picking up the phone. Bad experience.

Went for an exhibition. It charges 30 dollars per person but the ‘immersive exhibition’ was almost a joke.the staff is nice but we feel like it’s way overpriced.

Always interesting and different. We had a All hands company meeting last time I was there it was a good venue and we were well catered to.