The Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec announces the 13 recipients for its 2023 cohort

Paule Baillargeon, Lucie Boissinot, Shana Carroll, René Richard Cyr, Louis Dallaire, Michèle Lapointe, Ranee Lee, Jacques Matte, Caroline Monnet, Guy Parent, Jocelyn Robert, Richard Séguin and Larry Tremblay will receive the title of Compagne or Compagnon des arts et des lettres du Québec on May 29 in an investiture ceremony at Espace orange in the Wilder Building in Montréal. 

This prestigious honour awarded by the CALQ pays tribute to luminaries from the cultural milieu for their outstanding contribution to the development and reputation of excellence of Québec arts and literature, at home and abroad. Short biographies of recipients are appended.

“Quebec’s cultural community is rich, stimulating and diverse. The marvelous work of its passionate artists and professionals has traveled to the four corners of the earth. Their achievements enrich our lives every day. Each of these personalities is shaping Québec’s culture, in their own way. Their contributions deserve to be recognized. On behalf of the CALQ, I congratulate the 13 recipients. I am delighted to welcome them into the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec family.”

— Sylvain Lafrance, President, Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec

“It is an honour to partner with the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec once again to recognize the artistic excellence and exceptional careers of artists, cultural workers, professionals and managers from Québec’s cultural community. On behalf of our cooperative, I salute the achievements of the talented people who are joining the Order this year and thank them for their contribution to the vitality and richness of our culture.”

— Marie-Christine Cojocaru, General Manager, Caisse Desjardins de la Culture

The Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec

An honorary distinction instituted in 2015 to mark the CALQ’s 20th anniversary, the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec This link will open in a new window is awarded to artists, writers, teachers, managers and patrons whose outstanding achievements have helped make the arts and literature thrive in Québec. The honour is symbolized by an insignia designed by jewellery artist Christine Dwane. 138 Québec personalities currently wear the insignia.

See the complete list of recipients This link will open in a new window

Conseil de l’Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec

Compagnes and Compagnons are recommended by the Conseil de l’Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec, a jury that evaluates nominations received in response to an annual call for candidates. The recommendations are ratified by the CALQ’s board of directors. This year, the jury was made up of Myriam Achard, Anne-Marie Blouin, Karla Etienne, Jack Robitaille and Louise Warren.

About the Caisse Desjardins de la Culture, official partner of the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec

An ally to artists, a driver of the cultural economy, and a springboard for organizations and entrepreneurs, the Caisse Desjardins de la Culture is a financial cooperative with deep roots in the community. For the past 25 years, it has been supporting artists, artisans, and self-employed workers in their personal and professional projects, offering cultural businesses and organizations financial services adapted to their needs, and participating in the socioeconomic development of the cultural milieu by supporting structuring efforts and projects.

About the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec

The Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ) invests in the imagination and celebrates the successes of those who create memorable works, shape Québec’s cultural identity, and make it shine. With a view to equitable, sustainable artistic development, the CALQ supports creation, experimentation, and production in the arts and literature in all regions of Québec and promotes dissemination in Québec, Canada, and abroad.

The CALQ would like to thank the Caisse Desjardins de la Culture, main partner and Le Devoir, media partner, for its invaluable cooperation.

Details about the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec This link will open in a new window

Recipients and short biographies

Paule Baillargeon ǀ Film

Born in Val-d’Or, Paule Baillargeon is an actress, director, screenwriter, and author. She cofounded the Grand Cirque Ordinaire and has had roles in some 30 films, directing nine, including La cuisine rouge and Sexe des étoiles (The Sex of the Stars). A rebel, feminist, and devoted activist, her explosive work blurs lines between fiction and documentary. The Prix Albert-Tessier and a Jutra Hommage have crowned her career.

Lucie Boissinot ǀ Dance

Performer, choreographer, and educator, Lucie Boissinot has been active in dance for 45 years. As artistic and program director for the École de danse contemporaine de Montréal, she has grown the number of partnerships and transformed programs to prepare students for the realities of the 21^st century. Through her considered judgement, visionary spirit, engagement, and dedication to the succession, she has trained generations of artists she continues to inspire.

Shana Carroll ǀ Circus arts

Trapeze artist, choreographer, and cofounder and co-artistic director of The 7 Fingers, Shana Carroll has left a substantial mark on the broader circus world. An aggregator of multidisciplinary talent and avant-garde creator whose accomplishments enrich our collective imagination, this American by birth and Québécoise by adoption has fostered the blossoming, growth, and promotion of a new generation of circus artists who shine on stages and in big tops around the world.

René Richard Cyr ǀ Theatre and film

Actor, director, producer, generator of ideas, host, professor, translator, songwriter, and artistic director at the Théâtre PÀP Petit à Petit and the Centre du Théâtre d’Aujourd’hui, René Richard Cyr has marked multiple facets of Québec culture. Recognized by many awards, his career, which features popular shows and demanding works, includes staging 125 productions from repertory theatre to creations, from opera to song.

Louis Dallaire ǀ Film

Originally from Rouyn-Noranda, Louis Dallaire is vice-chairman and cofounder of the International Film Festival in Abitibi-Témiscamingue. He has been responsible for communications and short and animated film selection for the event since its creation in 1982. He has also been a beekeeper, director, host, producer, researcher, writer, and cultural agent, and spent 14 years managing and expanding the Réseau BIBLIO de l’Abitibi-Témiscamingue et du Nord-du-Québec.

Michèle Lapointe ǀ Arts and crafts

A prominent figure in contemporary art glass, Michèle Lapointe has distinguished herself for the originality and technical complexity of her pieces that feature a range of materials. Transparency and optical illusions create fascinating atmospheres from which memories and nightmares emerge, reflections of and on human nature. Alongside her work recognized by the Prix Jean-Marie-Gauvreau, she spent three decades in a major pedagogical role at Espace Verre, contributing to the development of budding artists.

Ranee Lee ǀ Popular song and music

Originally from Brooklyn, singer, musician, and composer Ranee Lee has become the queen of jazz in her adoptive city of Montréal, from which she has conquered the international scene by letting her light shine at prominent festivals. In addition to teaching jazz at Université Laval and McGill University, this award-winning virtuoso with an impressive discography is the author of books for children and has participated in theatrical, film, and television productions.

Jacques Matte ǀ Film

Born in Montréal, Jacques Matte has directed the Théâtre du cuivre in Rouyn-Noranda and cofounded the International Film Festival in Abitibi-Témiscamingue. The personification of sustainable cultural development, he has dedicated his life to establishing flagship organizations in his adoptive region and fostered the production and shooting of films outside major centres. The recipient of many awards, his innovative management approach is studied at HEC Montréal.

Caroline Monnet ǀ Visual arts and cinema

A multidisciplinary artist, visual artist, photographer, and filmmaker, Caroline Monnet grew up between the coast of Brittany and the Anishinaabe community of the Outaouais. Her dual social, political, and spiritual identity is expressed in a corpus that combines the visual vocabulary of traditional Indigenous cultures with contemporary popular imagery. This winner of a Sobey Art Award and a Prix Pierre-Ayot, she redefines the image of an Indigenous woman and is establishing herself as one of the most vibrant artists of her generation.

Guy Parent ǀ Film

Cofounder of the International Film Festival in Abitibi-Témiscamingue Guy Parent is a builder whose efforts have generated enriching cultural benefits for his region and community. A visionary administrator, he contributed to the expansion of the Théâtre du cuivre, the Aréna Dave-Keon, and the municipal library, as well as the construction of the Musée d’art de Rouyn-Noranda during his 40 years working for the municipality of Rouyn-Noranda.

Jocelyn Robert ǀ Multidisciplinary arts

A luminary in contemporary art, Jocelyn Robert has spent 30 years exploring and revolutionizing the visual, media, sound, and computer arts. Researcher, performer, writer, teacher, and designer, he injects humour and poetry into an original process, focused on connections between people and technology. He created and managed Avatar, and participated in the founding of Méduse, leading a remarkable career in Québec and around the world.

Richard Séguin ǀ Popular song and music

Singer-songwriter and engraver, Richard Séguin won the SPACQ’s Prix Sylvain-Lelièvre for his exceptional career. Solo or in collaboration, he has recorded some 15 albums, with songs that pendulate between the intimate and the collective and address essential battles for justice, identity, peace, and solidarity. He created a Sentier poétique in the Eastern Townships and the Grande Nuit de la Poésie in Saint-Venant-de-Paquette.

Larry Tremblay ǀ Literature and theatre

Born in Chicoutimi, Larry Tremblay is a playwright, writer, director, actor, educator, and specialist in kathakali, a dance-based Indian theatre that influenced his vision of the actor’s body. Inspired by the work of Francis Bacon, he anchors feelings in the flesh and the musicality of words to express the tragedies of his time. Translated into over 20 languages, his eclectic body of work has reached every continent and received many prestigious awards.