English

A third edition for the
Symposium d’art/nature : Moncton 2012

September 28th – October 7th 2012
In the Millenium Ecological Park and the City of Moncton

The third edition of the Symposium d’art/nature : Moncton 2012  from September 28th to October 7th, will be showing a variety of public art: land art, intervention, sculpture, installation and performance pieces by a dozen artists. The Symposium will also offer a conference series exploring the theme of energy, and weaving links between art and ecology. As early as the first edition in 1999, this event stressed the importance of the Petitcodiac River and riverside through artistic trails promoting the rediscovery of this neglected space in need of a rebirth. In 2004, for its second edition, the Symposium established a partnership with the Parc écologique du Millénaire (Millenium Ecological Park), an alliance that continues with this new edition. The artistic projects will be presented at the Millenium Ecological Park located on the Université de Moncton’s campus, as well as throughout Moncton on random and sporadic treks.

Energy is the heart and the motor of life. Energy, through its production, transformation, consumption, is central be it for agriculture, transportation, construction, or urban development. Every action’s need for energy must be addressed : technical development, exploration and extraction of natural resources, while also noting the progressive destruction of nature and its ecosystems. Through thought provoking actions and ideas, artists and ecologists find common ground with the theme : energy. The symposium strives to promote encounters and collaborations between the artists, the ecologists and the public.

The Arts Component
Ned Bear (New Brunswick)
Danyèle Alain (Quebec)
Michael Belmore (Ontario)
Jean-Denis Boudreau (New Brunswick)
Paul Griffin (New Brunswick)
Gilbert LeBlanc (New Brunswick)
Rose-Marie E. Goulet (Quebec)
Christopher Varady-Szabo (Quebec)
Ensemble Deschênes/Gibson (New Brunswick)

While putting forward a great diversity of works created by professional artists, the Symposium would also like to attract the public’s attention to pressing matters: the importance of artistic action linked to our ecology, the necessity of preserving our public spaces, as well as the awareness of the impact our actions have on the environment. To this effect, a series of conferences have been planned for the duration of the Symposium.

The Conference Component
Addressing territory – a meeting of strategies art + ecology
Serge Fisette (Quebec)
Denis Lanteigne (New-Brunswick)
Bénédicte Ramade (France)
Rose-Marie E. Goulet (Quebec)
Danyèle Alain (Quebec)
Ibrahim Ouattara (New-Brunswick)
Bill Vazan (Quebec)
Caroline Lancol-Daigneault (Quebec)

A Moncton PechaKucha  featuring the Symposium’s artists and other guests is planned for October 4th at  8:20PM (doors open  at 7:30 PM) at the Aberdeen Cultural Center.

The Permanent Artwork component
During the Symposium, the artist Bob Verschueren (Belgium) will proceed with the installation of his permanent art piece Renaître which will be a wonderful addition to the Millenium Ecological Park’s growing collection of works along side those of Nils Udo and Francine Larivée. Renaître’s  Inauguration will take place October 7th at noon.

The Gallery component
The Galerie d’art Louise et Reuben Cohen will, for its part, be presenting Lieux inusités/ Uncommon Ground with Magali Babin, Scott Rogers and Scenocosme from September 26th to November 4th, the opening of which will be held on September 26th from 5PM to 7PM.

Guided tours open to the public during the Symposium will be held on Saturday September 29th, as well as on Saturday October 6th between 1PM and 5PM. The event’s launch will be held Friday September 28th at 10 AM in the Park. The Symposium will be open to the public every day from 11AM to 6PM. Free admission.

The Symposium d’art/nature: Moncton 2012 is an initiative of the Université de Moncton’s visual arts department, the Galerie d’art Louise et Reuben-Cohen, the Association acadienne des artistes professionnel.le.s du Nouveau-Brunswick, and of the Parc écologique du Millénaire committee (Millenium Ecological Park). The organizing committee: Ronald Babin, Jean-Pierre Caissie, Herménégilde Chiasson, Nisk Imbeault, André Lapointe, Marie-Noëlle Ryan.

This event along with the conferences would not be possible without the following partners: the Université de Moncton, Canada Council for the Arts, the City of Moncton, the Arts Development Branch of Culture, Tourism and Healthy living New-Brunswick, the Sécrétariat aux affaires intergouvernementales canadiennes of Québec, Heritage Canada, and the Consulat général de France dans les Provinces atlantiques with the Société  Nationale de l’Acadie through l’Entente Wallonie-Bruxelle. Thanks to our sponsors : McArthur’s Nurseries and Price Contractors.