Townships photographers photo circuit
The second edition of Objectif Photo Cantons-de-l’est was officially launched on Tuesday, Aug. 20 at the Pierre-gobeil Cultural Centre in Rock Forest. Countless artists gathered with curators from the 12 different exhibitions to celebrate the photographic tour, which will unite Racine, Sherbrooke, Stanstead, Sutton, and Valcourt. The circuit began in June and will be offered until December 2019.
For those who wish to see a preview of what Objectif Photo has to offer, the “Grand Angle” exhibition will be held at the Pierre-gobeil Cultural Centre from Aug. 20 to Sept. 30 to offer an overview of the photographers exhibited in the circuit. “Our goal is to put forward artistic photography. In this day and age, everyone takes photos and there are billions of pictures taken every day,” admitted Suzanne Pressé, coordinator of Sherbrooke University’s art gallery. “Yet, we often neglect that an artistic photo is completely different. It’s a project, it’s a thought, it is a perspective on the world. It holds more than a simple selfie. ”
The Uplands Cultural and Heritage Centre, the Musée d’histoire de Sherbrooke, and the Maison de la Culture de Racine started off the biennial event in June, while the Centre Culturel Le Parvis, Sherbrooke University’s Art Gallery, and the Musée des Beaux-arts de Sherbrooke and the Pavillon Armandnadeau at the Lac des Nations, will begin presenting exhibitions at the end of this month.
The Arts Sutton Gallery, Valcourt’s Centre Culturel Yvonne L. Bombardier, and the Maison des arts et de la culture de Brompton will follow the photography tour throughout the month of September. Then, the Stanstead Colby-curtis
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Museum and the Comité arts et culture Jacques-cartier de Sherbrooke will conclude the adventure by inaugurating their exhibitions in October and November.
Many photographers exhibited are from the area, so Townshippers may recognize several locations that have been photographed. “What’s interesting is that every arts center or gallery is responsible for its own programme and its schedule, but we come together to share our budget for our artistic diffusion, uniting our pamphlets and our advertisement,” remarked Pressé.
“Given the diversity of identities in our circuit, we can alternate from historical exhibitions to contemporary art when completing the Objectif Photo circuit,” mentioned Brigitte Graff, director of Comité Arts et Culture Jacques Cartier. “Photographers were able to stay true to their identity instead of conforming to one narrow theme.”
The circuit will combine highly edited and stylized content in some locations with archive photos, notably the “Mémoires Sherbrookoises” exhibition at the Musée d’histoire de Sherbrooke and “Rencontres avec le passé” at Maison de la culture de Racine.
“What we wanted was to create an alliance to give more visibility to artistic photography in the region. We also wanted to offer a circuit much like other arts tour in the Townships,” added Graff. “It was important for us to give photography its rightful place and recognition in the arts world. We are also in time with the Provincial Photography Month in September, but we wanted to extend the period of the circuit to allow for a broader reach.”
“We take billions of photos every day, more instantaneous than a polaroid, immediately liked in virtual galleries with versatile audiences,” stated Luc Pallegoix, photographer and spokesperson for the artists. “This circuit is here to remind us that this is not Instagram. It’s another world, it’s true, it’s anchored, it’s a world of emotions and feelings, where we do not give an answer, but rather ask different questions.”
Most of the exhibitions are free, with the exception of the Colby-curtis Museum and the Musée d’histoire de Sherbrooke, which offer additional exhibitions. For more information about Objectif Photo Cantons-de-l’est, please visit objectifphotocantonsdelest.com.