This letter was sent to Montreal mayoral candidates Denis Coderre, Balarama Holness and Valérie Plante.
We are at the head of eight major Montreal institutions and are extremely concerned about the challenges that Montreal, a cultural metropolis, will have to meet in the coming years.
While the arts and culture are at the heart of Montreal’s identity, we have to admit that we have heard little about them during this electoral campaign which is coming to an end.
Under the direction of the energetic Nathalie Maillé, the Conseil des arts de Montréal, along with other city bodies, plays a fundamental role in supporting artistic communities. At the end of the summer, the Board was given a new chairmanship in the person of Ben Marc Diendéré, a prominent figure in the business community.
In a speech following his appointment on September 15, the new president launched a vibrant appeal to the City of Montreal to make a gesture of increased and ambitious support to help institutions and artists to emerge from this crisis even stronger. and more innovative. He estimated that the additional investments in the budget of the Conseil des arts de Montréal should be at least 10% for the next two years. His analysis was supported by the outgoing president, Jan-Fryderyk Pleszczynski, who insisted on the need to support an important cultural and economic sector which is an essential vector of revival for Montreal.
We join our voice to theirs in asking you, as candidates and candidate for mayor of Montreal, to officially commit to substantially increasing funding for the Conseil des arts de Montréal, whose exemplary action in terms of equity, diversity, representativeness and accessibility, as well as sustainable development is a guarantee of success and success for all players in the Montreal cultural community.
* Signed this letter: Stéphane Aquin, Montreal Museum of Fine Arts; Madeleine Careau, Montreal Symphony Orchestra; Patrick Corrigan, Opéra de Montréal; Marcel Jean, Cinémathèque québécoise; Marc Lalonde, Grands Ballets Canadiens; Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Orchester Métropolitain; Jean R. Dupré, Orchester Métropolitain; Lorraine Pintal, Théâtre du Nouveau Monde; Suzanne Sauvage, McCord Museum