Local artists thrive at Pervers/Cité’s Art Market
Pervers/Cité’s 10th event of their annual festival a success as artists sold to eager supporters
Pervers/Cité, an annual queer, trans, and non-binary summer festival, held their Art Market at Le Cagibi, a coffee shop on Blvd. St-Laurent. Ten local queer artists ranging from jewellers to thrift bookstore owners displayed their art Sunday, Aug. 29.
The Art Market was one of the many events put on by Pervers/Cité which started Aug. 19 and has events going on until Sept 12.
Over 40 artists applied to take part in the Art Market and BIPOC artists were given priority, explained Nat Pace, the event organizer.
“We prioritized BIPOC artists and also people without a super established platform so we could give people a first time opportunity to sell,” they said.
Pace added that since events like these have been extremely scarce this past year, people were excited for new opportunities to showcase their art.
The different displays included one set up by Blandine Anglehart, which featured her handmade jewelry. Despite having always been into art, she only picked up this hobby during the pandemic. While most of us gave up on our quarantine hobby right after the first lockdown ended, Anglehart followed Instagram accounts to learn, and eventually set up an etsy to sell her art.
However, she does not plan on making jewelry forever since some of the material she uses can be very harmful to her health.
“Apparently resin is really toxic to make and if you’re not in the right work environment, it’s not the safest,” she said. “So I think I want something that’s a bit less toxic.”
Before crafting jewelry, she used to make beaded necklaces, and in the future, she wants to learn how to sew.
Hasina, a multidisciplinary visual storyteller who has been practicing her art since birth, as she said, was another artist at the Art Market. She is self-taught and started selling prints in 2019.
Dustin-Ariel Segura Suarez and Antoine Vogler, who run an online thrift bookshop, also had a display at the Art Market. The pair offer a selection of 10 books by LGBTQ2SAI+ authors which they renew every two to three weeks. They do not have a physical location, so Pervers/Cité’s Art Market was the perfect opportunity for them to get a table.
“The goal is to promote LGBTQ2SAI+ literature,” Suarez said. “This is a selection of books we appreciate and have read, and we sell them at a price that is more accessible [than most bookstores].”
Throughout the day, attendees were encouraged to buy raffle tickets, with all proceeds going towards the costs of running the festival as well as their BIPOC honorarium. The raffle included various art pieces donated by every artist.
Pervers/Cité has raised a total of $2,500 so far through various events, including this raffle.
After the five hour event ended, many artists expressed having enjoyed collaborating with Pervers/Cité and appreciated conversing with attendees.
“I was very impressed by the event as it’s only my second yet, but it was great everyone showed up despite the rain,” Anglehart concluded.
A few similar events are still in store for Pervers/Cité, which ends on Sept. 12. Their full schedule is available on their website.
