EMILY HSUEH
PONTIAC Feb. 24, 2021
The spotlight will be on the Pontiac’s artists and venues this week in a new video series being released by 100 Mile Arts Network on Wednesday.
As the first part of Our Hidden Hills — a three-video series featuring different Outaouais regions’ artists, venues and studios — five subjects from the Pontiac will be shown in the first installment on the organization’s YouTube channel on Feb. 24 at 7 p.m.
Matt Selic, the producer and host of the series explained that each video is 30 minutes long, being split between five artists and locations. The other two videos in the series will be centred on . . .
Vallee de la Gatineau and La Peche, and will premiere the following two Wednesdays, respectively.
“They’re going to see a glimpse. There is so much wonderful talent in [the Pontiac], there’s no way we could represent everyone that was there,” said Selic. “So I basically just went around and picked a few people that represented different things. For example, a painter, a musician, and it’s meant to just be a glimpse, a cross-section of what’s available in the Pontiac, who’s out there.”
Representing the Pontiac in the first episode are Jennifer Dale and Scott Judd from The Little Red Wagon Winery, musician Matthew James, visual artist Victoria Mestres-Laurin and the Pontiac Community Players.
Selic came up with the idea of traveling around the Outaouais and delving into its art scene to display the talents of local people, given that live events are impossible in this time.
“It was my idea to come up with a miniseries that would help to showcase some of the local artists from one region to the next, given that we can’t do touring shows, we can’t have live concerts,” he said. “So I thought, ‘Let’s go and we’ll interview people and in the process, we’ll learn about them and they can show us about who they are and what their art is.’”
He emphasized that the series is not just going to be a display of art, although that will still be included. He explained that viewers can expect in-depth interviews and discussions on how the craftsman or venue came to be what they are today, giving a detailed look at the artistic forces that shape each region.
“If we meet a musician, it’s not just them performing, it’s us talking to them and them sharing with us a little bit about how they came to live in the region and what forms and inspires their music, what they hope to do with their music,” he said. “Same thing with visual artists. It’s learning more about who they are and what they have to offer as well as example of their work.”
The videos are also intended to “help bridge that gap so people from other regions can be aware of the artists that are around [Gatineau Hills]” and encourage them to discover and connect with artists nearby. The 100 Mile Arts Network is working to make a roster of artists from all disciplines, and reached out to members already registered to be a part of Our Hidden Hills.
Selic invited any artists to join the organization, and for anyone interested to browse the names on the list to discover what more the region has to offer. He also hoped that Pontiacers will tune in to the remaining episodes to discover more artistic talent.
“I would love folks from one region to learn about artists from the neighbouring communities, too,” he said.
“We’re barely scratching the surface,” Selic added. “Anyone who’s watching the series, we’re just representing a small number of the people who are a part of our network, and an even smaller number of people that are actually in the region so I would encourage people to go online and look at our website to know more about the other people in the Pontiac; we couldn’t possibly represent them all. “The video is just a taster of what’s out there.’
The videos will be shown here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYNG2m0BLLrYtMp79sTLoBg
