PRESS RELEASE
Six Quartier des Spectacles honourees announced
Montreal, September 8, 2026 — For the fourth year in a row, the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership is pleased to honour artists, artisans and professionals who are closely involved with the Quartier with its Prix reconnaissance. Three categories of outstanding people are honoured: artists, cultural workers and historically significant persons. Jean-Robert Choquet, Francine Bernier, Victor Pilon and Michel Lemieux as well as Daniel Iregui and Gratien Gélinas are being celebrated with an original video projection.
The work, titled Prix reconnaissance - d'audace et de culture : portraits hommage, created by Montreal multidisciplinary artist Elizabeth Laferrière, will be projected on the façades of Édifice WILDER | Espace danse and the Grande Bibliothèque starting at nightfall from September 8 to October 4, 2026.
This year’s honourees
For the 2026 edition of the awards, the public will encounter exceptional people who have shaped the Quartier, or whose work has changed or continues to inspire art in the Quartier des Spectacles. A jury selected the recipients in three categories: artists, cultural professionals and historical figures. The jury members were Nathalie Benoit, UQAM’s director of institutional promotion; Sandra O’Connor, co-executive director and administrative director at the FTA; Louis-Armand Bombardier, president of LABE - Let Artists be; and Nassib El Husseini, Ph.D, C.Q., C.M., president and chief executive - Les 7 doigts de la main.
Artists:
- Michel Lemieux and Victor Pilon, respectively co-artistic director and director of strategy and co-artistic director, 4D ART
- Daniel Iregui, digital artist
Cultural professionals:
- Jean-Robert Choquet, cultural manager
- Francine Bernier, artistic director and co-executive director
Historical figure:
- Gratien Gélinas, actor, playwright and producer
Recognition by and for the people who shape the Quartier des Spectacles
The Quartier des Spectacles Partnership established its Prix reconnaissance in 2023, when the organization marked its 20th anniversary. The honour is presented in the form of a video projection, a signature art form of the Quartier des Spectacles, paying tribute to one or more people who have made significant contributions to the Quartier. Each year, a call for nominees is issued to the members of the Partnership and a jury of cultural figures selects honourees in several categories. View the list of honourees from the first three editions.