Heartwarming art, right into your home

Mackenzie Sanche - Le jeudi 15 octobre 2020

© Mackenzie Sanche

To celebrate the pandemic-adapted 2020 Culture Days, Josée Caron found a way to unite Saint-Colomban’s inhabitants by bringing their co-citizens’ art into their homes thanks to her online exhibition called Oeuvres virales.

Even though Saint-Colomban is now a red zone, the small town’s administrative agent for culture and events has made good use of her creativity. In the spring, she contacted many artists from her town, proposing to make a pandemic-themed exposition in June. She totaled approximately 15 participants, and some even made more than one piece of artwork for Oeuvres virales, bringing the exhibition to about 20 pieces about isolation and social distancing.

Although Oeuvres virales was originally to be presented in June, Mrs Caron discovered that the Culture Days had changed dates and would be held from September 25th to October 25th, offering a whole month of artistic events instead of only a few days. The exhibition in Saint-Colomban was coordinated to happen within that time span, both online and at the municipal library.

The vernissage was held only a few days before the MRC Rivière-du-Nord was declared a red zone, which forced the library to close, stopping short the in-person part of the exhibition. Luckily, Mrs Caron had already planned to use Saint-Colomban’s Facebook page, posting an artwork every day on weekdays.

“I was looking to give a platform to our artists and give them visibility through this project, but I knew that people couldn’t necessarily come over to the exposition,” explained Josée Caron gleefully. “So I thought… Why not bring the artists and their art into our citizens’ homes?”

She also added that using Facebook allowed her exhibition to reach more people, and different people too. She noticed that the visitors of the exhibition hall of Saint-Colomban are often the same because some people simply aren’t aware or cannot make it.

The art in itself is varied, ranging from all types of paintings to mixed media. All pieces are linked to the theme of confinement from each artist’s point of view. As Mrs Caron said, “Depending on the artist you are, you have a different vision of what you’re experiencing, and everyone is living through this in their own way. We can all find something for ourselves within these pieces.”

Although an online art exhibition is definitely not the same as an in-person experience, Mrs Caron’s initiative and innovativeness has allowed artists to showcase their work in a very relevant theme and context. Every Facebook post gives its audience the means to contact Mrs Caron if they were ever interested in one of the pieces that are for sale. Mrs Caron thinks that the artists enjoyed this opportunity for visibility and to make art out of a difficult period such as this pandemic.

The way Oeuvres virales was brought to life makes it reach into Saint-Colomban’s citizens’ homes and hearts, making this second confinement a little less lonely thanks to relatable and magnificient artwork.

To check out the exhibition, click here!