Louise Sicuro

Louise Sicuro has devoted her entire career to the development of the arts and culture, promoting them and encouraging public participation. One of her most notable initiatives is the creation of the Journées de la culture. For 26 years now, a multitude of activities have been held all over Quebec for these 3 days at the end of September, bringing the public together with artists and making culture truly accessible to everyone.

Ms. Sicuro is the founder of Culture pour tous, a non-profit organization that co-ordinates the Journées and also offers different education and awareness programs. She was the President and CEO of the organization up until October 2021.

She earned a specialized graduate diploma (DESS) in management of cultural organizations from HEC Montréal in 1994, as a member of the program’s first cohort. At that time she was combining work and studies, as she was employed as a co-ordinator of cultural activities by the City of Saint-Léonard. It was in that capacity that she created the Port-Maurice gallery and defined its exhibition policy. Even back then she included a whole dimension of citizen and student participation.

She went on to hold the position of director of relations with municipalities, with the Conseil des arts de Montréal, for several years.

Among her other professional accomplishments are her role in founding Culture Montréal and the Groupe de recherche en médiation culturelle, which later became the Observatoire des médiations culturelles.

In recognition of her dedication to democratizing culture, Ms. Sicuro was made a Member of the Order of Canada in 2011 and a Chevalière of the Ordre national du Québec in May 2019.

Throughout her professional life, she has served on many boards of trustees, and is a current Board member of the Fondation de la Place des Arts and the National Arts Centre, in Ottawa.