Marie-Claude Marquis - Sorry, Not Sorry

Harman Projects is pleased to announce Sorry, Not Sorry, a solo exhibition by Montreal-based multidisciplinary artist Marie-Claude Marquis. This marks the artist’s second solo exhibition with the gallery, following her 2022 presentation, Inner Romance.

Known for her poignant yet playful text-based interventions on found vintage objects, Marquis navigates the intersection of nostalgia, feminism, craft, and humor with her sharp and distinctive voice.

In Sorry, Not Sorry, Marquis confronts the emotional labor and internalized guilt disproportionately shouldered by women. “As women, we are conditioned to be people pleasers—to say yes, to shrink ourselves, to take up as little space as possible. And with that comes guilt,” she explains. “This exhibition is a response to that weight.”

The works in Sorry, Not Sorry explore the contradictions between societal expectations and personal liberation, offering concise and often hilarious commentary on the daily burdens of modern womanhood. Phrases such as “Too tired to give a damn” and “Hot mess, but trying” are hand-painted across delicate heirlooms, relics from a more “polite” era that Marquis disrupts with raw honesty and wit.

Each piece is a small rebellion: a refusal to apologize for not living up to impossible standards. As the title suggests, this exhibition is a declaration of selfhood, inviting viewers to consider the absurdity of performative guilt... and to release it with laughter.

Marquis’ work has been featured in exhibitions across North America and Europe, including presentations with Galerie Robertson Arès (Montreal), and Urban Nation Museum (Berlin). Her art has appeared in Vogue Portugal, Frankie Magazine, and The Globe and Mail, and is included in public and private collections including the Musée Pointe-à-Callière in Montreal.