EDMONTON — It’s a one-night contemporary art event presented in several major cities throughout Canada and the world, and now, Edmonton is one step closer to having its own Nuit Blanche festival.
A group of established arts and design organizations is seeking $350,000 from the city, in order to bring Nuit Blanche to Edmonton in October 2015.
Nuit Blanche was first celebrated in Paris in 2002. The event was launched in Toronto in 2006 with about 450,000 attendees. Since then, it has grown to attract upwards of a million people each year.
WATCH: Torontonians explore this year’s Nuit Blanche
The one-night-only art festival lasts from sunset to sunrise, showcasing temporary art installations throughout city streets.
Monday morning, the city’s Community Services committee voted to send the $350,000 request to city council for consideration during budget discussions this fall.
“I think they’re going to go ahead no matter what, it’s just a question of what kind of scope it can have,” said Ward 8 councillor Ben Henderson.
The local arts group is also looking for $435,000 in corporate sponsorship in order to make a go of Nuit Blanche Edmonton.
Nuit Blanche Edmonton is proposed to be divided into two zones, each of which will host at least 10 art installations the night of October 3, 2015.
Henderson believes Nuit Blanche is a great way to extend Edmonton’s festival season into the fall.
“I think it’s a great idea, I’ve been quite keen on it,” said Henderson. “We need to be able to consider it; it’s been a huge success in other cities.
“Everywhere else they’ve done it it has so far exceeded expectations in terms of the number of people that come out and how well it goes.”
Should the Nuit Blanche Edmonton event be successful in 2015, the organization’s plan proposes continued bi-annual events in 2017 and 2019.