BEN

I first spotted Ben on the debaucherous streets of Club Main, dandily sporting a bow-tied Oxford carefully tucked into a pair of pre-Second World War long shorts. Running into him later at Salon Officiel during a Coupe Bizarre launch, I invited him to the Studio.

An aspiring architect, a working hair stylist, and a closet novelist, Ben told me about his dream of designing skyscrapers and related some of his 20-something anecdotes. Formally recording his fictionalized biography under a pseudonym, future readers can be sure to become engrossed in an audacious account of a Nameless Generation character.

DAVID

You might see David riding around town on a City of Saints staple, namely, the fixie. Catch him at a loft party somewhere in the no man's land between the Mile End and Park Ex, outside a SNAP Magazine launch party on the Plateau, or snapping early morning photographs with his vintage analogue camera. Head down to Old Montréal and dine at a four star hotel...he might have cooked your meal. A man of many faces, David will be leaving us for the City of Glass, where he will delight many a palate from a Van City kitchen.

MYRA

Sporting a bowl cut with a beige bomber and combat boots along the de Maisonneuve bike path, Myra agreed to join the ranks of the City of Saints project. Shooting in the midst of July's suffocating heat wave, she told me about her 9-5 battle stories, and the tiresome commute from Montréal's shopping hub where she lives to the city's garment sector on Chabanel. Having already launched a collection with a major fashion label, this aspiring designer is well on her way to victory!

http://myrale.blogspot.com

MICHAEL

An Irish designer, Michael makes his summer pilgrimage to the City of Saints to study under a Montreal fashion great. Despite a torrential downpour, Michael scurried to my de Gaspé studio, just one industrial building away from his. We managed to squeeze the shoot in just days before the 2010 heat wave, and chatted about all things aesthetic. A passionate and eager apprentice, Michael is here to learn design and the city.

Sadly the autumn wind will whisk him back across the Atlantic, where he hopes to eventually make his home in the centre of international fashion, London.

ATHENA

Hailing from the West Coast, soul songstress Athena comes to the City of Saints to contribute her holy vocals and instruments to the roots music scene. Performing at a range of venues, including Grumpy's for the established Chick Pickin' Mondays, Athena will be picking away at the strings of her folk-infused guitar, delighting listeners of all kinds. Jazz Fest 2011, perhaps?