Montreal, Quebec - The Illuminated Crowd

The "Illuminated Crowd" is an interesting public sculpture, made in 1985 by artist Raymond Mason from stratified polyester resin with polyurethane paint.

The plaque reads: "A crowd has gathered, facing the light, an illumination brought about by fire, an event, an ideology -- or an ideal. The strong light casts shadows, and as the light moves toward the back and diminishes, the mood degenerates; rowdiness, disorder and violence occur, showing the fragile nature of man. Illumination, hope, involvement, hilarity, irritation, fear, illness, violence, murder and death -- the flow of man's emotion through space."

Officially 314 x 860 x 320 cm or approx 10 x 28 x 10 feet, the figures are life-sized. About 12 people from front to back and 4 from side to side.

It's in a good location outside the main gate of McGill University, amidst several skyscrapers, with shops and restaurants nearby. In the short time I was there several people stopped for a look and/or a picture. [Marv Solberg, 01/10/2008]

[RA: There's a lot of interesting mayhem in the back of the "Crowd," including a nude man collapsing backwards over a crawling man, a knife-wielding Klansman, and a smoke cloud from a cross or bomb.]