The Maison des Artistes is located in Treaty 1 territory, the traditional territory of the Anishinabe, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota and Dene peoples, and the cradle of the Métis nation. It recognizes that these peoples are the true custodians of the lands and waters of this territory.
La Maison des artistes visuels francophones is a not-for –profit organization committed to the pursuit of meaningful dialogue about art and creativity for the francophone community. We provide public programs and art exhibitions that resonate with our many audiences. At La Maison, we warmly invite and welcome people from all backgrounds and ages; artists from all visual arts disciplines to engage in a multi-cultural dialogue about distinct minority communities, identity and sense of place. We provide professional support for artists every step of the way in innovative ways in which to experience art for the community at large.
La Maison des artistes visuels francophones is a contemporary reflection of the collective stories from the Red River Valley. This important crossroads was a trading route for Indigenous peoples and the European settlers who began arriving in the early 1800s. Through time this created a tapestry which is unique to Manitoba that includes the diverse French Quarter of Saint- Boniface and a multitude of bilingual rural towns located throughout Manitoba.
Reflecting this history, La Maison was founded on February 7, 2000 in Winnipeg and already had about fifteen members. The president at the time, Mario Buscio, indicated that "[La Maison's mandate] will be to promote and distribute the works of French-speaking artists [and] to encourage exchanges between artists. "Breaking through isolation has been an important component of La Maison from its inception: even the choice of its name, La Maison des Artistes, signals the desire to create a space for meeting and gathering. La Maison now has over a hundred members and presents a rich and varied artistic and educational program each year.
La Maison is aimed at a large and diverse audience, from all walks of life and from all economic means, flourishing in the face of the French language's appeal and culture, brimming with solidarity and inclusion for minority communities. In this sense, the original name of the artist center was changed in 2004 to "La Maison des artistes visuels francophones inc." To better reflect the artistic vision of La Maison, which is an integral part of linguistic history of Canada. This vision is based on the many languages used before and after colonialism and which were suppressed until the creation of the Official Languages Act of 1969 and, more recently, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of 2008 which drew l attention to the loss of indigenous languages.
Defining its actions by belonging to a minority, La Maison takes the representation of diversity to heart. The programming of exhibitions and activities is a way to highlight the richness of this and to engage the public in the integration and acceptance of difference, but more particularly in relation to linguistic minorities. The values that guide the actions of the organization -- inclusiveness, fulfillment, solidarity, creativity, and integrity-- testify to this desire.
Our Mission
La Maison des artistes visuels francophones is first and foremost an association serving francophone visual artists in Manitoba who want to work to ensure the viability of an artistic career. It sees to their development and is dedicated to the defense of their individual and collective interests. The activities of La Maison must meet the needs of representation, training, promotion and dissemination of the visual arts. The organization is committed to offering training for members in good standing and raising public awareness in general.
Our Vision
La Maison strengthens the vitality and diversity of the Francophonie by being recognized as a major player in culture and the visual arts.
Our Values
The actions of La Maison are thought out and carried out around the following values:
Our Partners
Each year, La Maison collaborates with between 20 and 25 various organizations inside and outside its walls and strives to continue supporting its existing partnerships while building new relationships with organizations in and outside the cultural milieu. These partnerships aim to support and diversify La Maison's activities, but also to develop new audiences. The organization actively relies on interdisciplinary dialogue to allow more people to discover the visual arts.
Here are a few partners from with whom La Maison has worked with in recent years:
Accueil Francophone http://accueilfrancophonemb.com
Alliance française du Manitoba https://www.francophonie-en-mouvement.com
Art AccessAbility Network Manitoba (AANM) https://aanm.ca
ArtCity https://artcityinc.com
Artspace https://art-space.ca
Association des groupes en arts visuels francophones (AGAVF) https://www.agavf.ca
Centre culturel franco-manitobain (CCFM) https://ccfm.mb.ca
Centre Bang https://centrebang.ca
Centre Turbine http://centreturbine.org/d7/
Conseil jeunes provincial (CJP) https://conseil-jeunesse.mb.ca
Éditions du Blé http://ble.refc.ca
Entreprises Riel http://www.entreprisesriel.com/en/
Fédération culturelle canadienne-française https://www.fccf.ca
Festival international des écrivains de Winnipeg https://conseildesarts.mb.ca/2019/09/le-festival-international-des-ecrivains-de-winnipeg-subvention-partage-presentation/
Festival du voyageur https://heho.ca/fr/
Fierté Winnipeg https://pridewinnipeg.com
Jeunesse au travail Canada Jeunesse Canada au travail - Canada.ca
Katimavik https://katimavik.org/en/
Le 100 nons https://100nons.com
Manitoba Art Network https://manitobaartsnetwork.ca