Imagine a city without arts and culture. We would be left with the bleak and bare skeleton of our city, a concrete and glass jungle of buildings and roads. Arts and culture breathe vivacity into the skeleton of our city, rendering it vibrant and pulsing with life.

Winnipeg, named the Cultural Capital of Canada for 2010, has a vibrant arts and cultural community. The “My City’s Still Breathing Symposium,” running from Thursday, Nov. 4 to Sunday, Nov. 7, explores the symbiotic relationship between the arts, artists and the city.

“The main idea of the symposium is to talk about the current and future relationship between art, artists and city planning,” said Alix Sobler, the marketing and communications coordinator for Winnipeg Cultural Capital of Canada 2010.

“The idea is to bring people who have experience, interest and thoughts about incorporating the world of art into the very making of our cities.”

The symposium takes its name from lyrics for the Weakerthans song Left and Leaving, a song illustrating the intrinsic connection between arts and the city.

“The art of the city and the tone of our culture is really what gives the city life, what makes it alive,” said Sobler. “The idea that the city breathes and is alive is really inherent to the art that is created here.”

The symposium has drawn a wide array of speakers and contributors, including local and international artists and experts. Internationally acclaimed filmmaker John Waters will be giving a keynote address on Thursday evening, Nov. 4.

Life from 95, a locally produced documentary, will by shown on Saturday followed by an assessment by the film’s producers, Jim Agapito and Ervin Chartrand.

Agapito firmly believes that Winnipeg has been a major influence on his work.

“I think my approach to film is very much Winnipeg” said Agapito. “I think that people feel the vibe that the artists give off when they come to Winnipeg.”

Agapito joins a line of distinguished artists who breathe life into our city. Wanda Koop, one of Canada’s most prominent artists, perforates the life of Winnipeg.

“I feel like I couldn’t have done what I did anywhere else,” said Koop. “I find the city to be raw and wide open. I see how people from all walks of life live and that becomes a constant in how I see the world.”

Guy Maddin is another such profound individual who brings our city to life. He believes that through arts and culture we reap an understanding of our cities and ourselves.

“How citizens understand their city is quite often through art, architecture, film and stories,” said Maddin. “Long before movie cameras were invented, there were myths and folktales that helped people understand themselves, and the same goes for a city.

“Myth gives you an emotional or ecstatic truth about a place, rather than just the population or average temperature or humidity.”

My City’s Still Breathing takes place Nov. 4-7, For more information and to register, visit www.tinyurl.com/Uniter-Breathing, or email [email protected] or call 943-7668.

Published in Volume 65, Number 10 of The Uniter (November 4, 2010)