GMAQ x Centre SAGAMIE x PLURAL
This week, as the provincial budget is announced, GMAQ has been invited to Centre SAGAMIE work on the design, production, and distribution of its tools and ideas. We are pleased to announce that GMAQ will be present at the PLURAL Contemporary Art Fair from April 9 to 13. We are currently producing prints, postcards, a zine, and even a manifesto! All these wonderful items will be available at our table in exchange for your generous donations! The money raised will be used to prepare for their next mobilization actions, because even though the CALQ budget seems to have been increased, there is still a lot of work to be done!
The Great Mobilization for the Arts in Quebec
GMAQ is a grassroots movement created to bring together people from all disciplines of the arts. Its goal is to keep the political actions going, turn discouragement and exhaustion into action, and – why not? – turn it into a source of political joy. Artists from theater, dance, circus, music, interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary arts, visual arts, literature, and cultural magazines are fighting for a boost in provincial and federal budgets for Culture, and for the arts to get the recognition they deserve in Quebec society. Since its launch in spring 2024, the GMAQ has organized a bunch of actions and speeches, including five big protests for the arts in Montreal, Trois-Rivières, Quebec City, Sherbrooke, Rouyn-Noranda, St-Jean-Port-Joli, Sainte-Rose-du-Nord, Gatineau, and Rimouski.
GMAQ is fighting against the tough working conditions, uncertainty, and the huge precarity that artists are facing in a time of rising costs, where being able to work in decent conditions is becoming more and more of a joke. They’ve called for two main solutions: a big increase in the budget of the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ), and the creation of a safety net for artists – two things they see as a bare minimum for keeping the arts healthy in Quebec.
GMAQ is a space for reflection and creation that brings together people from different fields, letting them think collectively about the socio-economic conditions of artists and the role of the arts in society. It’s an independent, self-managed lab where people share experiences and come up with solutions. For them, making art is a political act, and art helps us create knowledge. By working together, sharing our voices and perspectives, we can break free from the typical talk about artists and the economy, and avoid getting stuck in negativity. We won't bloom alone: let's join forces and unite our voices!
