Feminist Art Magazine Yiara Launch A Hit
The women of Yiara (left to right): Cassandra Marsillo, events coordinator; Ellen Belshaw, assistant editor; Tess Juan-Gaillot, editor-in-chief; Steph Hornstein, associate English editor; and Isabelle L’Heureux, associate French editor. Missing: Valerie Frappier, head writer. Photo Althea Thompson.
Back in February, I wrote an article at Montreal Rampage about Yiara Concordia’s resident undergraduate feminist art and art history magazine were holding a vernissage and exhibit. The women behind Yiara are back again, and this time with their magazine in hand.
Yiara Magazine. The second issue debuted April 5th; a second printing will be happening shortly. Photo Althea Thompson.
The launch happened this past Saturday, April 5th, at Le Cagibi. Having been at the first magazine’s launch last year, it was great to see the difference a year makes. The most incredible thing was to see the difference in numbers; Le Cagibi’s backroom was full, but still enough room to maneuver your way through the crowd.
Launch-goers were treated to music by Broken Crowns, Tess Roby, and Charlotte Day Wilson. The performers provided enough variety of music that there was something for everyone.
Broken Crowns performing on April 5th, 2014 for Yiara Magazine’s second issue launch. Photo Althea Thompson.
An exciting moment for Yiara was handing out all printed copies that were on hand at the launch. Weren’t able to grab one? Fear not, here is a list of places to check for the magazine, courtesy of editor-in-chief Tess Juan-Gaillot.
- Concordia University (specifically the EV building and Fine Arts Reading Room)
- McGill University
- UQAM
- Universite de Montreal
- Galerie La Centrale
- Café L’Artere
- Various cafes in the Mile End
Juan-Gaillot has put on emphasis on placing Yiara in universities in order to show students what their peers are creating, as well as spreading the word that there are publishing opportunities for undergraduate students in the future. Despite the magazine being based out of Concordia, the editing team is always open to having students from other universities (French included) submit their work. This also continues the legacy that founder Raissa Paes hoped to create through the magazine – the hope that Montreal would have an open dialogue concerning feminist art and art history. With the way the magazine is going, there is definitely room for this to happen. It is encouraging to see the growth that has happened over two years, and the wait to see the increase going into the third year will be one that many people will have their eye on.
The women of Yiara (left to right): Cassandra Marsillo, events coordinator; Ellen Belshaw, assistant editor; Tess Juan-Gaillot, editor-in-chief; Steph Hornstein, associate English editor; and Isabelle L’Heureux, associate French editor. Missing: Valerie Frappier, head writer. Photo Althea Thompson.
The magazine has definitely reached a significantly larger number of people from the first issue to the current one, and it shows no signs of slowing down. Juan-Gaillot is certainly happy, saying that she is proud of the magazine and the work that everyone involved put into it. This year’s issue has more articles that deal with different arts, such as literature and one article that focuses on comedy as an art. The works of art that were featured at Café L’Artere can also be found in the issue, in case you missed the exhibit.
For Yiara faithful, the wait for the next issue will be a long one.
You can find Yiara on Facebook, and if you’d like to submit an article or work of art for the next issue, or if you simply have any questions, you can email [email protected]
