The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research

Fondation PHI presents "The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research", a public engagement project by the eponymous collective, in parallel with the exhibition "Rirkrit Tiravanija: JOUEZ/PLAY".

For this project, the PHI Foundation's education room is transformed into an office space, with a printer, a coffee area, a meeting room and workstations. This new layout contrasts sharply with the concept of open-plan workspaces. It's also a nod to the sterile, alienating environment often depicted in popular culture. A good example is the American TV series "The Office", where the office becomes an absurd place, and individuals find themselves in positions of both management and subordination.

By parodying these standardized environments and roles, "The Bureau of Noncompetitive Research" offers a critique of the values that seem to guide the contemporary art world today. These include hyper-productivity, the quest for visibility at all costs, commercialization and an entrepreneurial mentality.

You'll experience an exploration of new forms of work based on principles such as slowness, play, collaboration and exchange.

This exhibition is presented with the support of the SDC Vieux-Montréal as part of the Programme de soutien à l'offre culturelle du Vieux-Montréal.

N.B.: Visit the company's website for more details.

Photo: Daniel Fiset