The Ordre des arts et des lettres celebrates its 10th anniversary

Hélène Dorion, Claude Dubois, André Forcier, Linda Gaboriau, Rosie Godbout, Michel Goulet, Alice Ming Wai Jim, Menka Nagrani, Susie Napper, Louise Sicuro, Roland Smith and William Tagoona, as well as the members of the band Les Cowboys Fringants, Marie-Annick Lépine, Jérôme Dupras, Jean-François Pauzé and Karl Tremblay, will receive the title of Compagne and Compagnon des arts et des lettres du Québec during an investiture ceremony on June 10, at Espace orange in the Wilder Building in Montréal.

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

“Just as art is at the forefront of many issues facing society, the people who shape it light the way, awaken our consciousness, and prompt us to advance in our thinking. Art brings counsel. In putting their talent and creativity at the service of art, these luminaries help promote Québec’s cultural milieu and leave us with a tremendous heritage. On behalf of the CALQ, I would like to thank the 16 recipients for their achievements and their exceptional influence, and I welcome them to the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec family, which this year is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its creation.” - Sylvain Lafrance, President, Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec

“With deep roots in the cultural community it has fully dedicated itself to for the past 30 years, the Caisse de la Culture supports artists, artisans, self-employed workers, businesses, and cultural organizations in the projects that matter to them,” said Marie-Christine Cojocaru, General Manager of the Caisse de la Culture. “In this anniversary year, the Caisse is proud to once again partner with the CALQ to celebrate three decades of work in culture. The Ordre des arts et des lettres ceremony is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate, highlighting the incredible careers of luminaries who have helped make our culture resonate and radiate.”

The Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec celebrates the 10th anniversary of its creation

Introduced in 2015 for the CALQ’s 20^th anniversary, the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec This link will open in a new window is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its creation this year. It is awarded to artists, writers, teachers, managers and patrons whose outstanding achievements contribute to Québec’s artistic and literary development. The honour is symbolized by an insignia designed by the jewellery artist Christine Dwane. With this new cohort announced today, 167 luminaries who have left their mark on Québec arts and literature over the past decade are now part of this growing, happy family.

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 Anne-Marie Blouin, Michel Dallaire, Karla Etienne, Monique Giroux, Pierre Thibault 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 30 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.

The Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec: at the heart of culture for 30 years

For the past 30 years, the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ) has been investing in the imagination and celebrating the success 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 their invaluable cooperation.

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

Biographies of luminaries 2024

Hélène Dorion ǀ Literature

Author, publisher, columnist and critic, Hélène Dorion has spun a body of work between Québec City and Montréal, the Laurentians and the Eastern Townships, literature and philosophy, Québec and European journals, poetry, novels and essays, music and the visual arts, literary concerts, song and opera. She has received prestigious awards in Québec and abroad, including the Prix Athanase-David for her body of works, which have been translated into over 15 languages

Claude Dubois ǀ Popular songs

Singer-songwriter, publisher, producer and host, Claude Dubois showed an irrepressible passion for music from the age of 12. A poet and performer with undeniable charisma, an avid traveller, faithful to his roots and his language, this giant of Québec song has earned a vast audience with some 40 albums celebrating love, hope and freedom. The proud recipient of a dozen Félix awards, in 2001 he received an ADISQ Hommage for his career.

André Forcier ǀ Films

Director, screenwriter, producer and president of Films du Paria, André Forcier occupies a unique place in Québec cinema. His boundless imagination and the visual aspect of his films, with his unique style steeped in magical realism, have earned him international recognition. He has won many prestigious awards for his work, including the Prix Albert-Tessier and the Governor General’s Award.  He has received many career tributes, including the Iris Tribute Award and the Festival du nouveau cinéma’s Louve d’or. He is the ambassador for the Conseil des arts de Longueuil.

Linda Gaboriau ǀ Theatre

Born in Boston, literary translator and dramaturgical consultant Linda Gaboriau has brought to the Anglosphere the voices, spirits and worlds of iconic Québec authors such as Michel Tremblay, Michel Marc Bouchard, Wajdi Mouawad and Jasmine Dubé. Having worked for many years at the Centre des auteurs dramatiques centre for playwrights, she also founded the first international literary translation centre in North America, located in Banff. The excellence of her some 150 translations has been recognized by many prestigious awards.

Rosie Godbout ǀ Arts and crafts

Weaver, felt maker, visual artist, teacher and self-taught creator, Rosie Godbout has been producing wearable artworks the beauty and originality of which have been celebrated in Québec and around the world since 1978. A poet of textile and colour, she has won the Grand Prix des Métiers d’art du Québec twice, as well as the Prix Jean-Marie-Gauvreau for her remarkable work, which has been shown in galleries and at art fairs at home and abroad. She teaches at the École-atelier en construction textile de Montréal.

Michel Goulet ǀ Visual arts

Michel Goulet is a sculptor. Alongside this main vocation, he has taught sculpture at university and created memorable stage designs for theatre. For the past 40 years, his work has combined the everyday with the sublime, human scale with social reach. By bringing everyday objects and fragments of poetry into the public space, he starts conversations, poses questions, evokes stories and sows poetry with close to 70 permanent works installed around the world. The Prix Paul-Émile-Borduas, the Governor General’s Award in Visual Arts and other awards have recognized the innovative nature and power of his creations.

Alice Ming Wai Jim ǀ Visual arts

Researcher, art historian and theorist, professor and curator, Alice Ming Wai Jim holds the Concordia University Research Chair in Ethnocultural Art Histories. Founder of the Journal of Asian Diasporic Visual Cultures and the Americas, she has distinguished herself over more than 20 years through her commitment to recognize and increase ethnic and cultural representation in the visual arts in Québec and Canada.

Menka Nagrani ǀ Theatre and dance

A multidisciplinary artist, choreographer, director and renowned educator, Menka Nagrani is a pioneer and activist for inclusive artistic practices. Her exceptional, bold creations veer off the beaten track. Her interdisciplinary creation company, Les Productions des pieds des mains, founded in 2004, enables artists of all ages, origins and unique qualities to shine their light on professional stages in Québec and abroad.

Susie Napper ǀ Music

Cellist, gambist, entrepreneur, educator and mentor, Susie Napper is recognized around the world for her innovative, creative, bold and colourful performances of the baroque repertoire. She has founded inclusive vehicles such as Les Voix humaines and the Montreal Baroque Festival to bring together music lovers and neophytes. She has received honours including a Women of Distinction Award and being named Personality of the Year at the 2002 Prix Opus.

Louise Sicuro ǀ Multidisciplinary arts

Louise Sicuro has dedicated her life to promoting arts and culture. A manager, cultural mediator and visionary, she created Les Journées de la culture, which has been transforming relationships between audiences and artists since 1997. Founder of Culture pour tous, partner in Québec’s digital culture plan, the initiator of the Groupe de recherche en médiation culturelle, a cultural mediation research group now called the Observatoire des médiations culturelles, she also implemented the Lab culturel, an incubator for digital projects.

Roland Smith ǀ Films

Passionate about film, Roland Smith invented repertory cinema in Québec. For the past 60 years, he has devoted himself to creation and programming for movie theatres and video clubs. From Cinéma Empire to the Outremont, from the Boîte Noire to Superclub Vidéotron and from festival to festival, he cultivated generations of film lovers, promoting films and memorable encounters between filmmakers and audiences.

William Tagoona ǀ Popular songs

Singer-songwriter, journalist, radio host, editor and producer, William Tagoona is an icon of Inuit music and the pioneer of a style in which genres happily coexist. In the 1960s, he was a founding member and the singer for the first Inuit rock band The Harpoons. Engaged in promoting the language and culture of his people, he has produced some 30 albums and inspired generations of artists. The Aboriginal Music Awards has honoured his achievements, and CBC North presented him with an Award of Excellence in Broadcasting.

Les Cowboys Fringants ǀ Popular songs

The late Karl Tremblay and his bandmates Jean-François Pauzé, Marie-Annick Lépine and Jérôme Dupras made Les Cowboys Fringants a cult alternative rock band whose activist songs have been addressing the sociopolitical and environmental issues of modern-day Québec for the past three decades. Touring to sold-out houses in the Francophonie, the band has won 21 Prix Félix, two Miroirs de la chanson d’expression française, the Prix RIDEAU Hommage and the Medal of Honour of the National Assembly.