Isabelle Hayeur : Nuits américaines

Nuits américaines is an ongoing series of large-scale photomontages by Canadian artist Isabelle Hayeur. These images present a constructed reality to the viewer that contextualizes our progression towards globalization, a process that is continuously reshaping our inhabited environments. Although fictitious, these contrived settings are incredibly lifelike in their presentation and execution, confronting the viewer with the growing economic disparities and social divisions in our culture, gentrification, contemporary forms of segregation (such as free trade zones or gated communities), and the eradication of nature and rural areas due to urban sprawl. We are witnessing this transition—politically, economically, socially—on a global scale; however, the effects of these changes manifest themselves most destructively in our local communities. In her scenes, Hayeur likens these gradual changes to the transition between day and night, and uses twilight to suggest the many losses stemming from this evolution. In these photographs, Hayeur depicts the devastating consequences of a society suffering from mounting social inequalities and a crumbling infrastructure, ultimately leaving the viewer to question our progress as a society.