VIVA! Art Action, Montreal, Canada

Artistic Director: Michelle Lacombe

VIVA! Art Action is an internationally recognised biennial performance art festival based in Montreal. Founded in 2006 by artists Alexis Bellavance and Patrick Lacasse in collaboration with six local artist-run art centres, the festival has established a strong experimental and research-driven artistic profile and serves as an important hub for performance art in North America.

VIVA! is distinguished by its long-term commitment to artistic processes, its unique residency format VIVA! Kitchen, in which artists create performative meals, and its hybrid programming model that combines open calls with curatorial invitations. The festival encourages artistic risk-taking and supports relational, durational, and site-responsive works that frequently engage public space through strategies of infiltration and intervention.

Since its inception, VIVA! has evolved from a collaboration between six artist-run centres into an independent collective with a strong international reputation. Supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, and the City of Montreal, the festival presents a diverse programme of Canadian and international artists in both institutional and public spaces.

Exchange 2025:
– Chuyia Chia (Gothenburg) to VIVA! Art Action
– Mai Bach-Ngoc Nguyen (Québec City) to Live Action

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