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FIRST INTERNATIONAL SCULPTURE SYMPOSIUM

(August 21, 2006) Press Release
GEMS

GEMS, The Granite Exhibit & Museum of Stanstead proudly presents its First International Sculpture Symposium from September 3rd to September 10th 2006. There is no admission charge to this spectacular event and all families, organized tours and school groups are welcome.

Nine professional sculptors from Canada and the United States will perform live in the park for seven days on the GEMS’s site along Tomifobia river in downtown Stanstead. They will compete for the jury’s and the public’s bursaries.

Equipped with noisy pneumatic tools, stone chisels and diamond saws, the nine artists will face the challenge of producing a piece of art from a raw bloc of Stanstead Grey granite, one of the hardest stone in the world, around a common subject: THE BORDERS. "This subject was selected because of our geographic location of course, but also because it is a hot topic these days. Relations between Canada and the US are rapidly changing and our border community is suffering from this transformation. It will be interesting to feel the perceptions of the artists from both sides of this border about the new realities; relations, authority, boundaries, closed doors … the subject can take many directions," says David Bourgon, GEMS’s president and initiator of the syposium. The subject is also a perfect match with the new touristic route launched earlier this summer in the area, "le Circuit Découvertes Sans Frontières." All sculptures will be installed in different parks of Stanstead after the event, creating an interesting attraction for the tourists but also for the Trans-Border forum participants and guests. The organizing commitee have selected the following artists for the first edition : Andre Belle-Isle, Alan Frascoia, Amelie Pomerleau, Domenico Antonio Di Guglielmo, Lise B. Tetreault, Shannon Cooney, Sylvain Potvin, Mathias Peloquin and Georges Kurjanowicz. Art teachers, architects and other professionals will form the jury. In addition to seven days of "grandioso" live performance, the program includes the following activities: the opening ceremony and presentation of the artists and jurors will be held at 9:00 AM on Sunday September 3rd . All week long, the GEMS hall will host a silent auction featuring pieces from the participant artists and local products and services from the sponsors. On Monday night, everybody is invited to bring a lunch for a « pique- nique » and campfire with the artists in the Banting Holmes Park. Friday September 8th will see Mike Goudreau’s band performing live for a dinner-danse in the GEMS’ hall.

on Saturday September 9th at 10:00 AM, a competition involving local stone cutters will be held in order to produce the nine granite pedestals for the sculptures. The jury’s decision and the public’s poll results will be unvealed at 4:30PM on that Saturday. For the closing ceremony, a brunch will be served on Sunday September 10th at 10:00 AM in the GEMS’ hall while the silent auction will be closed.

Everybody is invited to support and vote for their favorite artists during the week. The sculptors will perform live under the tents from 9:00AM to 5:00PM from Sunday to Saturday. Tickets are available at (819) 876-5576 for the dinner-danse at $29 plus taxes and for the Sunday brunch at $15 plus taxes.

The presentation of this major event is made possible with the collaboration of the GEMS’ partners like Rock of Ages Canada who donated the granite for the sculptures, the Town of Stanstead and some other generous sponsors. The granite industry of Stanstead is the main employer of the area. GEMS, the Granite Exhibit & Museum of Stanstead is a unique 10,000 sq ft complex including a museum about the history and the manufacturing processes of the local granite industry and a showroom featuring the products of ten local manufacturers and artists.

For more information about this first International Symposium, you can visit www.stansteadgranite.org or call (819) 876-5576. GEMS is located at 14 Notre-Dame West in Stanstead.