Tag: Concordi’ART

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Arts

Reflecting on Montreal’s art scene

Panelists at the Concordi’ART conference discuss creative innovation

There is no doubt that the Montreal art scene has a unique charm. From street art to an overwhelming amount of art festivals, such as Papier, a contemporary art festival, and International Festival of Films on Art (FIFA), a film and digital art festival, the city’s bustling creativity is key to its personality. But what do the major players in the Montreal art scene have to say about the city’s success and where it’s headed?

The Concordi’ART club’s second annual conference took place on Feb. 3. With a focus on technology and interactivity, the main topic of discussion was Digital Creativity in the Arts Industry.

Concordi’ART is a student club that aims to bridge the gap between art and business by offering students opportunities to understand the art industry. They offer conferences, workshops and guidance for students interested in artistic entrepreneurship.

“Am I going to be able to live with my art?” said Yan Cordeau. This question inspired him and his team at MURAL to create a platform for artist collaboration.

“The challenge is always, am I going to be able to live with my art?” said Yan Cordeau, co-founder and curator of Lndmrk, a creative marketing agency, and MURAL, an urban art festival. Having started off his career as an artist, this age-old struggle shaped his and his team’s mission. This inspired them to create a place where they could offer work and pay to the artists they had collaborated with in the past.

However, it is not that simple. While the idea of starting a business may seem enticing, where does one start?

“[I] try stuff until I’m sick of it, and this is the truth,” said Pauline Loctin, an artist and founder of Miss Cloudy. She creates large-scale origami installations. “I have an idea in my head and I don’t know how I’m going to do it most of the time. So I try. And I fail. I try and I fail. Until I get something I really like.”

Doing what you like becomes a challenge, particularly in creative fields where finding a source of income is a primary concern. Collaborations and advertising are not always in the budget for small-scale businesses and artists. In a rapidly growing industry, what can companies do to ensure they don’t stray from their mission?

“Make sure [the company] is growing without losing its soul and values,” said Catherine Turp, creative director at Moment Factory, a multimedia entertainment studio known for their immersive multimedia shows. “The naïveté that existed in the beginning, when we started off, is still living; we’re still passionate, curious, multidisciplinary artists, and creative technologists from around the world.”

Be it through Moment Factory’s light shows or Montreal’s Art Souterrain, an annual festival aiming to promote accessibility to art, Montreal’s art scene brings people together to live and experience emotions, through multimedia experiences. “I think Montreal has an interesting recipe for events,” said Cordeau. “I think we can benefit from that and create something really unique.”

While determination, innovation and artistic integrity are among the key ingredients that contribute to the city’s charm and recognition, the root and driving-factor of Montreal’s artistic success lies, ultimately, in its sense of community.

Further information about Concordi’ART and upcoming events can be found at www.facebook.com/ConcordiARTclub/.

 

 

 

Photos courtesy of Concordi’ART

Categories
Arts

Cultivating a relationship between two worlds

Concordi’ART presents the second edition of their arts and business conference

After their first success in November of 2017, Concordi’ART is bringing The Collision of Art and Business Conference back for a second edition this Friday, March 15, in the John Molson School of Business (JMSB) building. The team behind the conference is gathering eight talented professionals and entrepreneurs who will share their experience working in the arts industry.

Concordi’ART is a club that serves as career guidance for students who have a passion for both arts and business. The President and Founder of the club, Alizé Honen-Delmar, is a graduating student in international business and film studies. The idea of starting the club came from a desire to cultivate a relationship between these world.

“I created this club because, three years ago when I was at Concordia, I was in JMSB and in the Fine Arts faculty, and no one was talking to each other. JMSB students were staying with each other,” said Honen-Delmar, “and then the same for the arts faculty students, I decided to create this club to bridge the gap between business and arts at Concordia but also in general.”

The core belief of Concordi’ART is that arts and business are not opposites. Rather, a student could very well study both fields.

“The objective of this [club] is to show students that art and business are not two different things. They can work together and create amazing things,” said Honen-Delmar. “We believe that if you work in the art industry, you need some business skills also. That’s why business is also central to us.”

The eight speakers attending the conference will discuss their background, studies, and key decisions they made to achieve success.

“We want them to share their career paths. Especially since there are a lot of students ready to graduate and go to these industries,” said Sarah Morstad, the social media manager of Concordi’Art and a graduating student in communications. “They can learn about the stepping stones of how these big people in the industry got to where they are now.”
Honen-Delmar added that “it’s also an opportunity for students to network and to discover this industry that a lot of people don’t know about.’’

The event will start at 5 p.m. and runs until 8 p.m. After the discussion, a networking mixer will follow. Not only will students hear the speakers’ presentations, they will also get the chance to speak with them one-on-one.
“You will have eight people from the industry and then you will have 50 or 60 people in the audience. It’s very easy to communicate with these people and ask them questions and advice,” said Honen-Delmar.

Morstad said the conference will be more relaxed and intimate compared to larger events that take place in the JMSB building.

“You are sitting right in front of them and there are only 60 people,” said Morstad. “There’s more of a connection.’’
“It’s not a business formal kind of conference. It’s very business casual,” added Honen-Delmar. “Everyone is very relaxed—even the speakers who have very high positions in their companies. They are very approachable people. It’s very easy to network with them.”

***

At the event, attendees can expect to meet:

Aude Mathey, a marketing and business development expert who is now working in distribution and marketing for Cirque du Soleil. She is also the founder of Culture et Communication, an online magazine on the best practices for cultural and PR professionals.

Helene Ha, a film producer and entrepreneur who graduated from Concordia University with a B.A. in communication studies and a minor in film studies in 2015. Ha founded her own production company, Gourmandises, and has worked with L’Oréal Canada, Moisson Montréal and The Government of Canada. One of her latest accomplishments is the screening of her short film Merveilleuse at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

Minh Nhat Le, a modeler/texture artist at Ubisoft. During his career, he has worked on AAA games that include the Far Cry franchise, the Watch Dogs franchise and Rainbow 6 | Siege.

Peter Dehais, a marketing professional who has experience working on festivals like ÎleSoniq, Osheaga and HEAVY MTL. In recent years, he has managed hundreds of events while working for Evenko. Dehais is also a Concordia graduate with a bachelor’s degree in commerce and marketing.

Tickets for the event can be bought online for $17.50. For more information about the conference or the eight speakers, visit the event on the Concordi’ART Facebook page.

Categories
Arts

Grab a pint and a paint brush

Jessica Di Giacomo, right, explains to Mia Anhoury how to add more definition by using white around the eyes. Photo by Alex Hutchins.

Concordi’ART hosts an evening of artistic exploration in collaboration with Paint Nite Montreal

Rather than spend a typical night out at a bar, a group of 20 Concordia students participated in an evening of drinking and painting hosted by Concordi’ART, in collaboration with Paint Nite Montreal, at Peel Pub on March 7.

According to Nathalie Sjarova, the vice-president external of Concordi’ART, the aim of the club is to create a community of people who enjoy both art and business. Concordi’ART’s motto is “building bridges between business and art.”

Alizé Honen-Delmar, the club’s president who is currently on exchange in Australia, created Concordi’ART in February 2017. Sjarova, a marketing student, jumped at the opportunity to be part of the executive team when she saw a post on Facebook seeking candidates.

Concordi’ART aims to encourage and help connect two typically dichotomous worlds. “Art students can learn a lot from business students, but also business students can learn a lot from art students,” Sjarova said. “It’s a very huge asset to be creative in [the business] environment, and at the end of the day, artists are entrepreneurs.”

Concordi’ART executives from left: Céline Salibi, Diana Jane Tran, Yonathan Chu, Sarah Morstad, Vincent Letarte and Nathalie Sjarova. Photo by Alex Hutchins.

Last week’s Paint Nite was an opportunity to bring people together to make art. Jessica Di Giacomo and Daniel Torchinsky, the co-producers of Paint Nite Montreal, led the painting tutorial.

A plate with large drops of paint in the primary colours—blue, yellow, red—as well as black and white, four paint brushes and a nicely rolled up apron were set up next to each white canvas sitting on a mini easel.

The goal for everyone was to recreate a painting that illustrated a close-up of an owl’s face. The first step was to outline the eyes with bright yellow and orange, and outline the beak with intimidating and unforgiving black.

Slowly but surely, the canvases went from white to covered in different self-made shades of green and blue.

With “drink-and-dry breaks” between each of the three layers of paint, participants were able to socialize, encourage one another and take a look at all the owls being created.

Paint Nites combine art and drinks for an evening of creativity and socializing. Photo by Alex Hutchins.

The final layer of paint required short brush strokes dipped in shades of blue, green and white to create a feather-like texture.

Despite all participants following the same steps and recreating the same painting, there was still room to express creativity. Some participants preferred to blend out the feathers, while others had a distinct ombré effect, going from light green to dark blue. Each eye varied in size from canvas to canvas, and one participant, Nathan Marrache, decided to paint Angry Bird-like eyes.

“It’s amazing how everyone’s painting looks so different even though it’s supposed to be the same,” said Marrache after he looked at everyone’s final paintings.

Paint Nite hosts events almost every day at various venues. More information can be found on their website: www.paintnite.com. Further information about Concordi’ART and any upcoming events can be found on its Facebook page.

Photos by Alex Hutchins

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