HERMÉNÉGILDE CHIASSON
THE SOVEREIGN FREEDOM OF A CREATOR

By Christian Saint-Pierre
translated by Andrée McNamara Tait

Born in 1946 in Saint-Simon, New Brunswick, Herménégilde Chiasson is a cultural icon in Acadian modernism. A man of the theatre as well as a man of letters, images, and forms, this creator defies pigeonholing. He is a painter, playwright, print-maker, filmmaker, and director; he justifiably describes himself as a multi-disciplinary artist. Over the past forty years, he has taken part in over one hundred exhibitions, directed fourteen films, published some fifteen poetry anthologies, created a dozen set designs, and penned over twenty plays. A conversation with the French recipient of the 2006 Gascon-Thomas Award.

The winners of the Gascon-Thomas Awards are chosen because, among other reasons, they are a source of inspiration for those who are devoted to studying the various theatre crafts. Naturally, then, we wanted to talk to Herménégilde Chiasson about passing on information and intergenerational relationships. According to the artist, who was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick in 2003, young Canadian artists are doing better than ever. “For a long time, we were very absorbed by questions of national identity: ‘What does it mean to be a Canadian? A Quebecer? An Acadian?’ We often fell into this dilemma. At the moment, these issues seem to have been more or less settled. Maybe not from a political standpoint, but in terms of identity, we have moved on. When you come to the realization that we are all human beings and that we share the same destiny, you can grow to create great works of art, or at least works that are extremely generous.”

Sixty-year-old Herménégilde Chiasson feels that the efforts of one generation benefit all those that follow, that the realizations and battles of a given generation become part of the next ones’ baggage. “I think that each generation has its work cut out for it. Once that work is done, it is also done for generations to come. For my generation, the issue of identity was fundamental. I know that for the following generation, it is now a given. They will not have to prove to anyone who they are. They were born in a milieu; they belong to a culture, a history. So, let’s stop waiting for someone else’s validation and move on to the next challenge.”

FROM GRAND-FATHER TO GRANDSON
It is a well-known fact that the father-son relationship is always more tense and antagonistic than the bond that unites grand-fathers with their grandsons. According to Herménégilde Chiasson, it is the same thing for the relationship between generations of artists. “Between fathers and sons, there are always conflicts as opposed to the filiations that are established between grand-fathers and grandsons. I have always told those in the generation after mine: ‘I am aware that you need a father to kill, and I am willing to play that role.’ At sixty, I have finally reached the grand-father stage, or at least I’m getting close to it.” In other words, you need to get through the conflict in order to achieve reconciliation, to oppose the ideas of your immediate predecessors, to affirm your own and become emancipated. “I think that young people today refuse – not always, but often – to integrate into institutions that they feel belong to another era. I feel that this is a very healthy initiative, because all oedipal conflicts end in the same way: the son tells the father: ‘I’m going to leave this house and when I return, you will respect me because I will have proven to you that I am able to build something else!’ I believe that is what youth is experiencing today. This would explain why there are so many emerging artists: courageous and passionate individuals who do everything in their power to find their own place within a culture.”

STEPPING ASIDE
An emerging artist is someone who will take the place of a mature and established artist. Far from saying that the new generation is sounding the death knell of his career, Herménégilde Chiasson feels that it is stimulating: “The presence of young people forces us to constantly question the relevance of what we’re doing.” He, for one, has never rested on his laurels. Driven by curiosity, then by passion, but also to reassure himself that he would never be satisfied by a given medium, the artist has touched upon everything. However, it seems that this autonomy has a price: “I can’t say that I have a particular style, and that has hurt me a lot. Today, we look for homogeneity, a personal trademark, a signature style.” All these years, Herménégilde Chiasson has worked freely without ever having deviated from his own artistic rigor. This bias is quite remarkable. Today, he is experiencing his “eccentricity” with more serenity than ever: “Perhaps because I’ve achieved a certain amount of wisdom, the only thing that interests me now, the only joy I know, is doing things. Writing plays, whether they are staged or not, writing books, whether they are published or not. With age comes serenity – not because what we needed to accomplish is behind us, but because we can now put things into perspective.”

“The presence of young people forces us to constantly question the relevance of what we’re doing.”

With regards to the creative energy and the importance of not wasting it on futile issues, the winner of the 2006 Gascon-Thomas Award has some advice for the artists of tomorrow: “I wasted a lot of time objecting to things. I had the impression that other people were taking my place – when all I had to do was to step up and claim it as mine. Nobody can take YOUR place. Young people who have understood this have a winning attitude, because they focus their energy on the right place.”

THE LEGACY
Young artists do not seem very inclined to acknowledge Herménégilde Chiasson’s legacy: “They won’t openly admit that I’ve inspired them, but in writing or in public, they will concede that my work has influenced them. They recognize this filiation, saying that they are the continuation.” On October 26, at the 2006 Gascon-Thomas Awards ceremony at the Monument-National, Mathieu Girard, a third-year Interprétation student from Caraquet, spoke on behalf of all of those who have not yet had the courage to: “Herménégilde has an Acadian heart; he is a founder of modern Acadian identity, a shinning light to guide a people stigmatized by a past which must be forgotten today in order to re-conquer the Acadia we are entitled to. I consider this man to be an example of achievement, perseverance, and success for all Francophone artists, particularly Acadian artists.”

HÉMÉNÉGILDE CHIASSON
Herménégilde Chiasson chose to remain in Acadia to pursue his artistic craft. Although he received extensive training in the visual arts,
he has touched upon everything: painting, print-making, graphics, film, radio, television, journalism, teaching, and writing
(scripts, essays, prose, plays, and poetry). He has written some twenty plays.

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