Rencontres de la photographie en Gaspésie will be welcoming the artists from the 14th edition of the event for Rencontres on Tour, from August 17 to 20, 2023. This unique event, which brings the public and artists together, offers a series of encounters on the subject of creation – screenings, guided exhibit tours, discussions and so on – in different places between Carleton-sur-Mer and Gaspé.
At Carleton-sur-Mer, Thursday, August 17, 2023
The launch of Rencontres on Tour will take place on Thursday, August 17, starting at 4 p.m. at the Quai des arts in Carleton-sur-Mer, in the presence of the artists. The public is first invited to tour the exhibition Le livre photographique (The Photographic Book) at the Gabrielle-Bernard-Dubé library, which is presenting books by guest artists at Rencontres 2023 and more recent titles issued by Éditions Escuminac, the publishing house of Rencontres. Afterwards, a tour of the exhibit Le chant des caresses (The Song of Caresses)by Lara Gasparotto (Belgium) is scheduled at the Vaste et Vague artist center.
At 7:30 p.m. presentations and screenings will be held at the Quai des arts Studio. Excerpts from the texts Psaumes picards (Picardian Psalms) by Philippe Garon (Gaspé Peninsula) and De l’imprévisibilité potentiellement mortelle de l’orignal (On the Moose’s Potentially Fatal Unpredictability) by Patrice Juiff (France), written during exchange creation residencies undertaken in France and Québec, will be offered to the public. The complete texts by these authors will be the subject of an exhibit in the Gaspé Peninsula and in France, as well as of a work to be co-published by Éditions Escuminac and Diaphane Éditions in 2024.
Later, the following artists will present screenings of their work: Cristian Ordóñez (Ontario), who is exhibiting Valle (Vally) in Matapedia; Miguel Leache (Spain), who is offering RÁPIDO REM in Pointe-à-la-Croix; Chieko Shiraishi (Japan), who is exhibiting Shikawatari (Deer Crossing) in Carleton-sur-Mer; Cince Johnston (Québec), who is presenting Freddy and Ceydie at Maria; and Sami Blais (Québec) – by videoconference, in this case – who is exhibiting The Last Floor in Nouvelle.
At Carleton-sur-Mer, Maria, Bonaventure and New Richmond, Friday, August 18, 2023
At 10 a.m., in the foyer of Quai des arts in Carleton-sur-Mer, the public can attend the roundtable Parole aux artists! (Let the Artists Speak!), hosted by Louis Perreault, offering discussions of the challenges surrounding the publication of a photobook. After this, Rencontres on Tour will continue with guided exhibit tours in the presence of the artists. On the program at noon: a tour of Shikawatari (Deer Crossing) by Chieko Shiraishi (Japan), on the quay in Carleton-sur-Mer; at 2 p.m., a tour of Freddy and Ceydie by Cince Johnston (Québec) at the Vieux-Quai park in Maria; at 3:30 p.m., a tour of the exhibit Les affluents (Tributaries) by Louis Perreault (Montreal) on the site of Musée acadien du Québec, in Bonaventure; and at 6 p.m., a tour of Carcasse (Carcass) by Normand Rajotte (Québec) at Pointe-Taylor Park in New Richmond.
These will be followed at 8 p.m., at Camp à Jos in Pointe-Taylor Park, in New Richmond, screenings and presentations by Normand Rajotte, by Louis Perreault, Zaynê Akyol (Québec) – the last of whom is presenting NÛJEN, the Women Soldiers, in Gaspé –, and Sarah Boutin (Québec) – the last of whom is presenting La prière a sa place parmi la mélisse, le thym, le feu, la baignoire, le lit, l’hôpital (Prayer has its place amid the lemon balm, thyme, fire, bathtub, hospital) in Paspébiac – in the presence of these artists. Presentations recorded by Guillaume Tomasi (Québec), who is exhibiting A bloom in the eye of the storm at Grande-Rivière, and Dolorès Marat (France), who is presenting Heureux hasard (Lucky Accident) in Gaspé, will also be offered.
In Paspébiac, Chandler, Grande-Rivière, Percé and Gaspé, Saturday, August 19, 2023
At 10:30 a.m., a guided tour of the exhibition La prière a sa place parmi la mélisse, le thym, le feu, la baignoire, le lit, l’hôpital (Prayer has its place amid the lemon balm, thyme, fire, bathtub, hospital) by Sarah Boutin (Québec) is scheduled for the boardwalk in Paspébiac, in the presence of the artist. Following this there will be exhibit tours of I Have Been There (photographic mission in Charlevoix) by Chun Hua Catherine Dong (Québec) near Cantine du Chenail in Chandler; A bloom in the eye of the storm by Guillaume Tomasi (Québec) at the church in Grande-Rivière; as well as Quaderno di un’isola (Notebook of an Island) by Ilaria Abbiento (Italy) and Deepland by Roselena Ramistella (Sicily, Italy) in Percé (Charles-Robin historical sector in Île-Bonaventure-et-du-Rocher-Percé national park) in the company of Claude Goulet, executive and artistic director of Rencontres.
At 5 p.m., the public is invited to the town of Gaspé for a guided tour of the exhibit NÛJEN, the Women Soldiers near the Horacio Le Boutillier house in the presence of the artist Zaynê Akyol (Québec). Lastly, at 6 p.m., a tour of the exhibition Heureux hasard (Lucky Accident) by Dolorès Marat (France) will take place at Musée de la Gaspésie, with commentary by Claude Goulet.
At Petite-Vallée, Sunday, August 20, 2023
At 10 a.m., a tour of the exhibit Burning by Marine Lécuyer (France) will take place on the beach of Théâtre de la Vieille-Forge, in Petite-Vallée, in the company of Claude Goulet.
Following these three crowded days of Rencontres on Tour, other stand-alone activities (e.g., creation residencies) will be taking place until mid-September. The exhibitions, meanwhile, will run until September 30.
Top image: View of the exhibition Notebook of an island (Quaderno di un’isola) by the artist Ilaria Abbiento at Percé © Photogaspesie