Meet the Students of the Faculty of Fine Arts:
Part Two

As the Art Matters Festival wrapped up its 25th anniversary edition and the academic year was coming to a close, undergraduate students Renée Edmona Mathews, Isabela Markus Nafarrate and Inka Kennepohl from the Faculty of Fine Arts reflected on the culmination of a season filled with creativity, collaboration and growth. 

Throughout the winter term, the trio — alongside many peers — led the organization of North America’s largest student-run fine arts festival, curating exhibitions, hosting events and fostering spaces for dialogue and experimentation across Concordia’s vibrant arts community.

The experience not only reflected their diverse artistic practices and leadership strengths but also highlighted the value of student-driven cultural initiatives.

As they got ready to step into summer, the team took some time to look back on the festival with pride — and ahead to the next chapter with excitement. 

Once again, Concordia’s senior photographer, Lisa Graves was on hand to capture the moment.

I was surprised at how many mini connections developed with people that are on the periphery of the festival

Renée Edmona Mathews

Renée Edmona Mathews 

Studio Arts (Drawing)  
Communications coordinator, Art Matters Festival  
Board member, VAV Gallery

To make things a little easier on the facilitators (and our budget), we decided to bulk buy the food and drinks for our events. This was a great plan — until our office fridge stopped working a week into the festival, and we had to throw away a bunch of meat and dips that had gone bad. Food waste is devastating to me so that was a tough blow, but we pivoted to vegetarian offerings, and all was well in the end.

I was surprised at how many mini connections developed with people that are on the periphery of the festival — the people that are crucial to things going smoothly but aren’t directly on the team.

For example, the gregarious cashier at SAQ who gave us great wine selections for events when we were overwhelmed by options. Or Phil, the owner of Tsar Printshop, who was always patient, helpful, and quick with turnaround for our posters and program guide.

Another memorable moment is when Luna Zhang, the facilitator of the exhibition Anchor, implemented an optional dress code for her vernissage. “We invite you to wear something that represents your identity, your anchor in the world. Whether it's traditional attire from your culture or a bold statement!”

I took the opportunity to re-wear the Caribana costume I made with my cousins last year. I rarely get the chance to share and celebrate that part of my culture in Montréal, so it was a very special moment for me. Getting to do so in a space where other people are sharing parts of themselves in the same way was heartening.

While washing dishes at the end of the written/unwritten vernissage, I overheard one of the artists complimenting the other and proposing that they collaborate. The other person was equally excited at the idea, and I couldn’t help but smile to myself, not wanting to interrupt. The whole interaction was sweet, and those moments of mutual admiration and connection are what makes all the work worthwhile.

Doing this job and working with this team has solidified my confidence in my capabilities as an organizer, leader and cultural worker.

Now that it’s over there’s a lot of mixed feelings. Isa and I described it as an amicable breakup — we know we have to move on, but there’s a deep appreciation for the time spent and all the care and effort that went into making this big thing happen. I’m incredibly proud of all that we’ve accomplished together, and I’ll carry this experience with me forever.

I gained a lot of insight from the professional artists we met while running the festival.

Inka Kennepohl

Inka Kennepohl

Studio Arts 
General coordinator, Art Matters Festival  
Board member, Fine Arts Reading Room

Working with artists is always fun and full of surprises!

The Filaments show was so crowded we had to set up volunteers to guard some of the more fragile artworks. The gallery, Produit Rien, is quite small and there was a tower made of paper bricks, Untitled (Column) by Christopher Larochelle, that I saw so many tote bags almost smack into, as well as an installation by Marie Bilodeau and Elizabeth Ly that had flower petals and ashes and stuff on the floor that was at risk of being trampled. But our volunteers were great, they jumped in to remind attendees to be mindful of the space.

These exhibitions were the part of the festival furthest away from Concordia, so you're off your home turf. Lots of attendees were not students, which is great for the artists and facilitators who get to bring their work to a new audience and build professional connections in the Montreal art world.

Our paper-making workshop also had high attendance. Sophie from Atelier Retailles was running the workshop, but obviously could not be everywhere at once, and I saw so many patient moments of attendees helping each other. People were giving advice on how thick to make paper when they had just done it for the first time. It was sweet to see that kind of support and encouragement.

There was also the opening party which was Valeria Ortiz’ Nuit Blanche event. It was freakishly cold that day, and I was serving drinks at the bar right by the door of Collectif art space. The cold air was blowing in all night.

We had over 600 attendees throughout the evening, which was a huge success, but eventually we were wearing our full winter coats and scarves to work the bar. The pictures from the event are funny because everyone is dancing and having a ball, but I also know we were frozen solid!

I gained a lot of insight from the professional artists we met while running the festival. From gallery and atelier owners to coordinators and admin at other festivals, it's exciting to see the careers people have built for themselves in the arts. In school, becoming a professional artist can seem kind of far-fetched and abstract, but seeing all the options out there for how to survive as an artist is really reassuring. 

Honestly, it mostly made me excited to make art. I got completely saturated with seeing art, with talking to artists, with going to galleries. I want to digest that and use all the excitement and energy there to make my own art. But I think that's a sign of success for me. If the festival is diverse, captivating, interactive, then other attendees are going to come away feeling inspired as well.

Getting to be in a position of leadership was somewhat daunting, but it ended up being very rewarding. Running a festival was something we as coordinators had never done before, but all along the way we were meeting students who had less experience than we did and supporting their development. There were students who got to show art for the first time, write their first artist statements. There were curators who got to plan an exhibition layout or a vernissage for the first time. But they all brought so much passion and creativity to their work. 

For me, the biggest challenge was maintaining my social battery. Being one of the faces of the festival was a lot of pressure and attention, like hosting 12 birthday parties in one month. I had to remind myself constantly that we were there to support the team and the artists. I'm so grateful for Isa and Renée because we were all in the eye of the storm together, and they took it all in stride. Once your brain switches into festival mode it's hard to think of anything else, so it helped a lot to have them there in it too, we could remind each other to be normal humans.

We just hired the coordination team for next year, and all of them had some kind of connection to the Art Matters festivals of years past. It was fulfilling to be on that end of the peer mentorship relationship.

I had a conversation with a facilitator after the festival who told me he plans on taking one of the interdisciplinary courses that some of the artists in his show were in. That’s what Art Matters is all about. Here, a facilitator chose this piece of art for his show, connected with the artists who made it, learned about their process and the classes they were in, and was so intrigued he decided to take the class himself. It’s an example of how artists inspire each other, and how impactful the art community is.

Now that we’ve wrapped up our time at the festival, I’ve realized we’re embodying it ourselves.

Isabela Markus Nafarrate

Isabela Markus Nafarrate 

Studio Arts, History 
Programming coordinator, Art Matters Festival

For many artists, the festival is their first opportunity to exhibit work in a gallery. I found that students often hesitate to express how they want their work to be displayed. So, as coordinators, we do our best to ensure that every artist is happy by the end of the installation.

A great example of this is the show Process Grounds, where the facilitator, Anna Noel, allowed each artist to bring in any documentation of the process they would like to display alongside their piece. When the plinths available at the gallery were not the right fit for one of the works, our tech director, Joshua Augusto, asked the gallery across the street to borrow one of theirs. It’s little moments of care and support like this one that make the festival such a great experience for everyone involved.

This year, our opening party was part of Nuit Blanche, and it drew nearly 700 visitors. Such high attendance was very exciting, but we hadn't planned for nearly 700 people to drag snow into the venue. The floor was incredibly wet, and our staff and volunteers were given a high-stakes mopping mission to save our equipment from water damage.

From my experience as Programming Coordinator, I learned many event planning skills and how to take on a leadership position, which will surely help me in my career. But more importantly, I grew to be confident in my skills, and I became more assertive. Plus, I met many people I look forward to working with again.

Going into the festival, I was worried about burning out. Hosting 11 events in one month is no small feat, and it's a lot of responsibility to take on. However, we had a fantastic team this year. Our dynamic and mutual support made everything easier, and even the long workdays were enjoyable.

We got very excited whenever we heard collaborations sparking at the events because it meant we had managed to capture the collaborative and creative spirit of Art Matters.

As cheesy as it sounds, the friendships and community we built along the way were the most rewarding part of my experience at Art Matters.

The team started a tradition of grabbing a drink together after each event, which was a great way to unwind from stressful situations and celebrate our hard work. I am very grateful for all those good memories and inside jokes.

Now that we’ve wrapped up our time at the festival, I’ve realized we’re embodying it ourselves. There’s a question in the air whenever Renée, Inka, and I look at each other: What are we doing next?