“Be fashionable tonight or forever wait in line” – Gibran Ramos, artistic director of Mad Maus

The scene happens on a Saturday night in Old Montreal. The location. The cavernous under-level of the Auberge Saint-Gabriel now known as The Velvet. The dress code. The above tagline says it all. In a city used to being often plunged in what is fashionably safe, it is somewhat revived as safe-zone rebels come out of their hiding and become mausketeers for one night for the monthly event, Mad Maus.

Every third saturday of the month, when the city slips away in slumber, Mad Maus at Velvet celebrates the world of art, fashion, design and pop culture with a soundtrack of electronic music and an atmosphere whisking the crowd back to the 1930′s of Hollywood, where the Betty Boops and eccentrics Mad Hatters of the time needed to gather in secluded basements of grand hotels or clock-makers shops to feel free from the world’s restrictions. In 2010, the time indeed has changed, but some things stay the same.

For this purpose, the makers of Mad Maus created an event in collaboration with Belvedere Vodka, where fashionistas of Montreal and beyond can gather, meet, greet, dance and genuinely have fun, with a glass of gourmet drinks in hand. Also, do they give a fashion designer, a stylist or an artist the opportunity to recreate the aesthetics of that vintage era and conceive a hat bearing mouse ears. The ears are symbol of the contrast between the ludic, the innocent and playful rebellion as to the hidden much darker culture seen at that time. Where can one wear Haute Couture in Montreal besides being a mannequin displayed behind a glass window? The glass windows of Mad Maus are as intangible as air, no boundaries. The freedom of fashion speaks at Mad Maus.

For this last edition of Mad Maus entitled “Mess with the Best”, the guest turntablist, Miami’s DJ Northernlight wowed the crowd with his psychedelic musical spectrum as the guests designers, duo Yibraham paraded through the attending mausketeers busy dancing and mingling, wearing their purposely-conceived artwork, the Maus ears. As this is the second edition of Mad Maus, the producers had chosen the Faulkner Twins, who at the same time posed as the subjects of the photoshoot that was undergoing on the first night. But there is much more to anticipate, the upcoming list is just as artistically rich, for Mad Maus is to feature such names as Naco Paris (yes, the designer that conceived Karl Lagerfeld “Karl who?” bag), Christopher Lee Sauve of Save Anna and the Missshapes.

For connoisseurs of art and design history, it may be hard to connect the initial conception of design revolutions such as the bauhaus or dadaism, to which Mad Maus claims to be inspired from, for Montreal hasn’t been the victim of unforgiving wars or dictatorship in order to counteract with their ideals. However, a social movement’s purpose is to make an ideal move forward. By celebrating emerging artists in fashion, art and design, Mad Maus is also creating its movement. Moving the industry of couture fashion in Montreal forward, slowly erasing the uptightness reputation it garnered through the years.

Because fashion is an art, and art is a sweet escape.

a little flashback to 1929

Mad Maus official website: www.madmaus.com

Photo credit: Faical Hajji, photographer (Photo #2)  / Daniel Payette, photographer (ALL but #2 (obviously!))

Share!!