SYDNEY, NS РLumi̬re Cape Breton lit up Saturday night with its Art-at-Night event, the highlight of its 2021 festival.
Lumière, an annual contemporary art festival that is currently in its 10th year, hosts the in-person art evening as a chance to immerse yourself in different art forms including music, live dance, performance pieces. theater, films and art installations.
Love the vibe here tonight#lumierecapebreton #artatnight pic.twitter.com/wlKjHLYhFy
– Jessica Smith (@CBPost_Jessica) September 25, 2021
“I think it’s great, it’s a great opportunity, people are out there,” said Paul Standing, a professor from Cape Breton University (CBU) who was at the Art-at-event. Night. “It was definitely an opportunity for people to go out and see the sites. “
Standing, he was part of a large crowd watching the Indian street theater happening at the intersections of Charlotte and Prince streets, which were blocked from traffic. A number of his students performed in the play, which was curated and directed by CBU international student Shashwat Trivedi.
“It’s a beautiful night, and it’s an opportunity for us to go out as well,†Standing said. “It’s nice to go out and see people and meet people you haven’t seen in a while. “
The Cape Breton Post spoke to Harsh Mahey, a 23-year-old CBU student studying supply chain management and one of the performers of the play.
“Basically (the play) is for the community to understand the basic needs of everyone, not just of a community, but also the preservation of natural resources.”
The eco-centric piece touched on topics like recycling, water use and environmental management, as well as issues that newcomers to Canada often face, like getting housing. and communication with residents.
“So these are issues that we talked about in our street game,†Mahey said. “We wanted to… get the community to talk about it and (Lumière) was a great opportunity for us to do so. “
Several hundred people attended the live event in Sydney city center, and many likely noticed someone in old-fashioned farmer’s clothes pushing a large haystack down Charlotte Street.
Becka Viau, the artist involved, said the piece was called Revolution.
“I’m pushing a 500-pound hay bale up a hill and will roll it until it collapses or until midnight,†said Viau, who was panting from the effort of pushing the bale. of hay on a slope. “It has to do with the relationship between industrial agriculture and the human connection to agriculture.”
Viau said the performative piece is meant to evoke a nostalgia for farming practiced in the countryside in years past, especially as technology has replaced much of this old-fashioned labor.
The Lumière Cape Breton Art-at-Night Festival is live on Charlotte Street in Sydney. ðŸŽðŸŒšâœ¨âï¸#lumierecapebreton #artatnight pic.twitter.com/irDeul0uxT
– Jessica Smith (@CBPost_Jessica) September 25, 2021
Crowds passing by stopped to take photos or watch Viau’s efforts, with some offering to participate and help, as guitar music floated past them from a nearby facility.
Guitarist Viktor Dugandzic said he was “overwhelmed with participation”.
“People were here before it started and they haven’t stopped coming,†he said. “I’m just happy to see so many people consuming art and having fun. Everyone has a smile on their face, it’s great.
Dugandzic has been playing guitar for 15 years and loves this instrument because it is an “expressive platformâ€.
?? #LightCapeBreton #ArtAtNight pic.twitter.com/yZH4vEmNey
– Jessica Smith (@CBPost_Jessica) September 25, 2021
“(Light) gives artists of all mediums the opportunity to express themselves and show what they have and to express their emotions in a way that people can absorb them.
“… The arts are generally left out and we are fortunate that CBRM does this every year. It’s getting better and better every year.
Jessica Smith is a multimedia reporter for the Cape Breton Post. Follow her on Twitter at @CBPost_Jessica.
