Montreal’s artch festival returns with 150 works by emerging artists

Montreal’s artch emerging art festival returns for its 8^th edition to Place Ville Marie until Sunday.

Visitors and contemporary art lovers can enjoy days filled with art installations, workshops, discussions and creative activities, and it’s all free!

“It is an exhibition of 12 young emerging artists, artists in visual art,” said Sarah Kitzy Gineau-Delyon, Executive and Artistic Director at artch. “artch is a non-profit organization, and we promote the work of very young artists, so less than five years of professionalization. We offer them workshops, we offer them mentorship about how to be visible on the internet, how to give a price to your artwork, all the stuff that you don’t learn in university.”

“They had a series of workshops, we offered them a $3,000 grant,” added Gineau-Delyon. “And then the last step of the program, it’s this exhibition here. So they have the opportunity to sell their work. We do not take any commission.”

Hosted in the lobby of 1 Place Ville Marie, this year’s festival centers on cooperation and community-driven artistic practices, featuring 150 works by emerging artists.

In a context where the sustainability of artistic practices represents a major challenge, this program explores how artists can organize, collaborate, and coexist with other actors beyond the traditional artistic circle.

“This program particularly reflects our mission: to support emerging artists in their professional development while creating spaces for dialogue and collective reflection,” said Gineau-Delyon.

In addition to the main exhibition, the festival includes a curated shop offering limited editions and artistic publications.

“You can discover ceramics, painting, there is a lot of multidisciplinary artists, also, photographs,” said Gineau-Delyon. “We also have a lot of sculptures, textiles, fibers, and performances.”

All artworks are available for purchase.

“For people who want to learn more about your artists, they can come here, they can speak to their artists,” added Gineau-Delyon.

Since 2018, artch has supported more than 167 artists in their artistic careers, fostering regional, national, and international recognition.