Enjoy a unique experience as you criss-cross the magnificent Gaspésie countryside and let yourself be captivated by the warm welcome offered by the enthusiastic creators who open their doors wide to you. The Art Tour brings together 36 artists, craftspeople, boutiques and galleries over an 800 km stretch of the Gaspé Peninsula. Lovers of art and culture, discover the local creations of the region’s artists and craftspeople!
Background
The Tour was created in 1995 under the name La tournée des studios et des ateliers de la Gaspésie. In 2006, the Conseil de la culture de la Gaspésie (now called Culture Gaspésie) renamed it the Circuit des arts visuels et des métiers d’art de la Gaspésie. In 2018, the Circuit finally took on its current name, Circuit des arts de la Gaspésie (the Gaspésie Art Tour).
Remit
The Gaspésie Art Tour assembles a number of art venues offering free visits to their creation, distribution and sales areas. Culture Gaspésie is keen to ensure that Gaspesian artists and craftspeople are recognised and to raise their profile, and has produced two joint promotional tools (a brochure and a website) to showcase the diversity of the cultural offering in the region. The bilingual Art Tour brochure is distributed free of charge throughout Gaspésie. The website allows visitors to create personalised itineraries based on their tastes and interests.
By identifying Gaspésie workshops, boutiques and galleries, the Art Tour fosters the creation, production, distribution and marketing of the works and products of the region’s creators. The Tour considerably raises the profile of Gaspésie’s cultural offering amongst local, regional and national tourist clientele.
For over 30 years, Culture Gaspésie has established itself as a solid and representative voice for the Gaspésie cultural community. Its credibility and leadership have enabled it to build alliances with various partners from the private, institutional and community sectors. What’s more, it has adopted the means and tools it needs to energise the community it represents and act in concert with it.
This presentation of the Gaspésie Art Tour was made possible through the support of the Société de développement des entreprises culturelles (SODEC) and the Ministère de la Culture et des Communications (MCC).
