The “Prophetess” exhibition, presented at the Galerie de l’UQAM until April 4th, offers an incursion into the intersection of documentary, urban legend, and contemporary art. Created by artist Océane Buxton, the installation combines photographs, videos, and found objects to bring to light a local, unknown story.
At the heart of the exhibition stands the enigmatic figure of Modeste Niquette, a marginal personality from Thetford Mines in the Chaudière-Appalaches region. Niquette claimed to have repeated encounters with extraterrestrial forces, photographing these experiences, distributing her pictures throughout the city, and making prophecies that sparked curiosity and skepticism. Then, she suddenly disappeared without much media echo. However, a mystery persists regarding the existence of Niquette, especially since Océane Buxton does not wish to disclose exactly when she would have existed.
“My friend introduced me to the story of Modeste Niquette, and I saw its potential. In celebrity culture, there are people who appear grand, but there is a certain accessibility. I find it interesting how these people build folklore around themselves,” explained Océane Buxton, the artist behind the exhibition. Graduating from the Master’s program in Visual and Media Arts at UQAM, Buxton conducted research on celebrity culture while writing her thesis. She further elaborated, “Celebrity culture inspired me a lot because it shows how certain figures become larger than life through the stories we tell about them.”
The artist revisits this episode to question the mechanisms by which individuals stage themselves in public space and contribute to the creation of collective narratives, whether they involve myth, sensationalism, or simple gossip.
The exhibition reveals a variety of mediums. Objects scattered throughout the space, sometimes presented as memorial altars, create a suspenseful atmosphere, leaving the impression that the story remains unfinished.
Combining personal investigation and real or reconstructed archives, the installation invites the public to reflect on the power of storytelling in the construction of public figures. Louise Déry, the exhibition’s curator, emphasized the project as “where one feels an in-depth exploration of its subject and the mechanisms of sensationalism and fictional documentary.”
Through this exploration, the artist highlights the close links between celebrity culture and urban legends, showing how certain figures, despite a lack of institutional or media recognition, attain an almost mythical status within their community.
“A friend told me when she saw the exhibition that she didn’t know how to feel,” confided Océane when asked about the reactions sparked by the exhibition.
