Antigonight ‘like Halloween for many art enthusiasts’

It’s kind of like Halloween for art enthusiasts, and really everybody, only a month earlier and just in Antigonish.

Antigonight: Art After Dark Festival comes to the Antigonish downtown Saturday with events and exhibitions from 6 to 10 p.m.

Artistic director Fenn Martin talked about the five “key headliners” for this year’s festival which includes three young female artists who are from the Antigonish area.

“It’s interesting, a kind of unifying theme,” Martin said.

“Women who have gone away and had these interesting careers elsewhere; been away for a long time. Sort of, from my generation, age-group; now invited back to show what they’ve been working on, their practices and to bring people into their projects.”

Martin began by talking about Jessica Mensch, who will be working with Emily Pelstring at Piper’s Pub, to create Inflatable Deities.

“They have this great multimedia thing planned. Then there is Laura Stinson, who is from the Ohio area, she has these papiermache 10-foot tall puppets,” Martin said.

“She has been traveling with this political puppet theatre in the U.S. which is very highly regarded and she is bringing that back here. “The third one is Abena Tuffour who was a dancer, a freeform dancer when she was growing up, and she has been doing poetry lately and just placed third place in a national competition.

She is here but, actually, moving to Ontario, so this is a great opportunity to have her for the festival.

“So three women who have done interesting things in very different fields; we’re getting them to headline this festival.”

Martin also talked about Katie Belcher’s project which will take up the front of the old post office building on Main Street.

“She is doing a piece along the front of the post office along Main Street; it’s going to be back lit from the windows and use all the windows in the front ... a large drawing,” he said.

Noting that the back of that building has often been used during previous Antigonights, but not as often the front, Martin talked about organizers trying to find different ways to utilize downtown locations.

Rachel Power, a planning team member who has taken on a few more duties this year with festival co-ordinator Amberlee Boulton out of town on occasion, noted the closure works too since it brings St. F.X. closer to the festival’s main locations.

“It’s nice that street is closed off so people can meander up to the art department at the university,” Power said.

Talking about her increased role, she noted it’s amazing how much detail goes into the planning of the festival.

“My hat goes off to these guys because it’s really a lot,” she said of the co-ordination.

“In the past, I’ve been a volunteer. I teach a course at St. F.X. and we came down and did a couple of little projects too, but being behind the scenes is such an eye-opener. I’m so excited to enjoy it but, now, I have a completely different lens after seeing all of the planning.”

Martin, one of the founders of Antigonight eight years ago, talked about the festival’s growth. “Each year our production gets a little better, the quality of our acts get a little better and we get more attention regionally ... I feel like, each year, we make a little gain,” he said.

“Make gains and, thematically, we have tried different stuff. One year there was more music but, this year, it’s more visual and video kind of stuff ... it’s always interesting to try new ideas.”