Nuit blanche lighting up Winnipeg for a ‘sleepless night’

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Get set for an illuminating experience with the return of the city’s annual all-night party of contemporary art installations and performances.

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Nuit Blanche Winnipeg returns Sept. 28 and shines a light on Winnipeg’s most venerated art institutions, independent curators, and 30,000 art animators in one night, organizers said.

The jewel of the wider Culture Days Manitoba program, the province’s largest contemporary arts festival is free and inclusive and has been in operation since 2010. It’s grown to include four city zones: the Exchange District, Downtown, St. Boniface, and the Forks.

The zones are connected via free trolley rides, and, new this year, free boat rides with Winnipeg Waterways.

It may seem a tad esoteric, but NBW general manager Kurt Tittlemier encourages an open mind.

“Some people may be uncomfortable with the genre ‘contemporary art’ and feel it is not for them,” Tittlemier said in a news release. “However, year after year, we have attendees who have never been before tell us what a great time they had. How they felt at home and how they plan on coming back. That feels great.”

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One of this year’s spectacles is included as a featured event for Winnipeg’s 150th anniversary — bilingual installation Open-Air Corridors/Corridors ouverts.

“Glowing at the western edge of the Provencher Bridge in Stephen Juba Park will stand a captivating maze of translucent corridors. Animated with immersive projections and sonic landscapes crafted by local artists, this ephemeral structure of light and sound mirrors the city’s shape, inviting visitors to find their own vantage point within it,” the release states.

The installations features sollaborations between Franco-Manitoban producer Rayannah and special musical guests, set against the vibrant visual works of Saskatoon-based media artist Stephanie Kuse.

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The Winnipeg Arts Council’s Public Art Program will again host a major installation in Old Market Square, from artist Anna Binta Diallo that invites you to “rediscover your place in the vast, beautiful universe.”

You can wander through the giant spheres of MoonGARDEN while shadow projections and the soundscape of Spectra create an immersive experience.

The piece weaves together silhouettes of humans, animals, celestial bodies, and natural elements through a kaleidoscope of light and colour, reflecting on how different cultures interpret cosmic events like eclipses and moon phases.

Dozens upon dozens of other installations await, with more signing up as the “sleepless night” approaches.

See nuitblanchewinnipeg.ca for more.

kevin.king@kleinmedia.ca

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