Dance Me to the End of Love
Leonard Cohen used to say, “I’m not a Quebecer. I’m not a Canadian. I’m a Montrealer”.
The mural “Tower of Songs”, which gazes tenderly down upon Rue Crescent in the heart of downtown Montreal, is a tribute to a Montreal icon: the singer, songwriter, and poet Leonard Cohen. The mural, based on a photograph of Cohen, taken by his daughter Lorca, is the result of a collaboration between two artists: El Mac, the internationally renowned American street portrait artist, and Gene Pendon, a Montreal-based artist. This immense mural, which spans an area of 10,000 square feet and covers the entire northern wall of a 21-story building, can easily be admired day and night from several key viewpoints, such as the Mount Royal Observatory and the Glass Court of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. The addition of this wall art on Rue Crescent in 2017 is such a blessing to this tiny strip, characterized by sumptuous Victorian houses, giving the Street a distinctive and delightful touch of elegance and warmth. The tenderness of Leonard Cohen’s eyes and his hand placed on his heart is so touching and bring such a smile to my face, that looking at it, I can almost hear his romantic warm voice singing one of his most beautiful songs, “Dance Me to the End of Love”. The scene of a couple walking down the street with this mural in the background and the charming houses and boutiques all around was such a uniquely romantic moment that I felt fortunate and satisfied I was able to capture it.