Nocturne grows up
Nocturne. Photo: Michelle Doucette
It began almost six years ago as a grassroots art festival. It was instantly popular, and has been attracting more attendees every year. Last year, the city teemed with people taking in the sights—highlights: ceramic bunnies and an enormous, interactive game of full-body Tetris.
Whimsical art still abounds, but the 2013 edition marks maturation for Nocturne. According to Nocturne’s new chair Lorraine Plourde, the team planned out the long-term direction of the festival in a long-overdue strategic meeting last year. “We’re only on six years, but the festival has grown so much that the board felt like they were always working on executing the event and didn’t have any time leftover to reflect on where it was all going,” she explains.
During the meeting, organizers decided to bring in a curator for the 2013 festival. One of interdisciplinary artist Eleanor King’s first acts as curator was to assign the festival its first theme: Time and Space.
“The theme could be taken literally, illustrating passing time, or space and the stars,” says Plourde. “The artists could interpret it more loosely by creating looping performances and projections. Or they could show how time expands and compresses.” Plourde feels strongly that having King in the role of curator will improve the cohesiveness between the exhibits.
And that’s not all that will change this year. The 2013 festival begins with an opening night talk, giving festival-goers the opportunity to plan their exploration in advance, guided by presentations from Plourde, artists, and other community members.
Nocturne runs 6 p.m. to midnight on Saturday, October 19.
nocturnehalifax.ca
This story was originally published in Halifax Magazine.
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