A “joyful and festive” march in support of artists
A new artistic mobilization activity, the “joyous and festive” walk, will take place on Saturday October 3 at the Marché de la Gare in Sherbrooke. Sherbrooke artist Ariane DesLions, who was at previous regional cultural events, is one of the creators who will be on site at the event.
Share September 30, 2020 Updated October 1, 2020 at 8:30 am Share A “joyful and festive” march in support of artists
Karine Tremblay La Tribune In the wake of International Artists' Day, a new cultural mobilization activity will take place in downtown Sherbrooke on Saturday October 3.
To mark the importance of the link that exists between the public and artists, Productions Muses et Chimères, with the ART movement (Artists recognized by fair remuneration at work) and in collaboration with the Conseil de la culture de l'Estrie, invite the population to a “joyful and festive” march that will begin at the Marché de la Gare in Sherbrooke.
“It is a meeting to make people aware of the importance of culture in our daily lives and of the essential link that exists between creators and the public, to the richness that this brings to our everyday lives”, expresses Jessica Paradis, one of the administrators of Productions Muses et Chimères.
The event will begin with a speech at 1:30 p.m.
“Around 2 pm, we will then make a human chain with pieces of rope two meters in length and we will walk together to Jacques-Cartier Park. The idea is really to forge a link with the public, to invite them to come and meet artists from the region, to become aware of the dynamism and effervescence that creators generate in our community ”, underlines Ms. Paradis, specifying that the group wishes to orchestrate a public event each month.
Second wave of postponements
A first demonstration, last September, challenged the political community more. This second militant activity comes as the performing arts are once again put on hiatus for 28 days in the regions of Quebec that have “gone red”, the maximum threshold of the system put in place by the provincial government to curb the second wave of violence. Covid-19.
“It's a new blow for us,” says Sherbrooke artist Ariane DesLions, who is forced to postpone once again shows that were planned in Montreal.
“It hurts terribly. With the march on Saturday, we want to sound an alarm in the hearts of people. We invite them to make a gesture of solidarity by coming to connect with us, by showing their support. The health crisis weakens the cultural environment, it highlights the extreme precariousness of creators, it generates another crisis whose effects will be felt for a long time if nothing is done. It's already started, by the way. Artists and craftsmen have left the environment to find work in another field. Creative companies will undoubtedly disappear over the next few months, ”notes Ariane DesLions, who pleads for support for artists.
Enough of the virtual
The proliferation of free virtual events like last spring cannot be a solution this time around, she adds.
“First, the virtual will never replace the real contact that the performing arts allow,” she explains. Watching a show on your screen is not the same as watching it indoors. After that, if the web is a way to keep a certain connection with viewers, they must be made aware that free can not last. Creators cannot give the fruits of their labor like this. “
The uncertainty that hangs over the coming months obviously worries the players in the field.
“We want to find innovative solutions that will ensure that the cultural community can continue to live,” notes Ms. Paradis. At the moment, everything is closing. And it's difficult to rally people around digital. Even though the show is taking place online, that doesn't mean people are there as much. We adapt, but we would like to be able to do more, to create other types of meetings, perhaps outside, for example. We hope to generate a movement, a bit like the blue basket does in food, where people show their support by “consuming” cultural products from here. “
