Vanessa Pilon, the Creative

Vanessa Pilon is known as a host, but she has many strings to her bow. Trained as a dancer, she is above all a major consumer of culture, always on

the lookout for the avant-garde.

The ambassador of Printemps numérique shares her vision of digital creativity. For her, new technologies are not an end in themselves, but a means: digital is a fantastic and powerful tool in the service of creativity. With the almost infinite possibilities now opening up, creators can break free from codes, blur the boundaries between disciplines and constantly renew wonder.

Because technology evolves so quickly, digital

creativity is by definition always moving, and one can only continue to be surprised. As a great admirer of visual art, she is especially interested in the way some digital works  arefinding a place and ensuring their longevity inthe art market, even though their supports may quickly become obsolete. She cites Ed Fornieles, who plays with the fictional space of social networks, and Cory Arcangel, who crystallizes and questions the accelerated obsolescence of technologies,

trends and

culture. Their works are shown in museums and galleries and collected like paintings, which makes her smile at the idea that one day the televisions on which they live may need to be rebooted. The technology that excites her most at the moment is augmented reality. She feels

we are only seeing the tip ofaniceberg

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that will revolutionize our perceptionsand our interaction with our environment. Digital is already part of everyday life without our even realizing it, and it is more intuitive than ever. We only need human sensitivity and curiosity to appreciate it. She also collaborated with Dominique Skoltz on Y2o, a project in which she dances underwater. Y2o is difficult to classify: it combines dance and cinematography. The team filmed sequences underwater in a cinema tank, producing a

kind of romantic closed-door encounter in a suspended

space-time, exploring intimacy and the different phases of a relationship to music by Emilie Bernard. The work is presented in tableaux that visitors can contemplate while wearing headphones. Only recently did she fully realize that it was a digital work. What impresses her most aboutMontréal creativity isits abilityto touch universal emotions.

She believes this explains

creators stand out abroad becausethey surprise audiences with extraordinary inventiveness combined with an approach that resonates globally. She says we can be proud of what Moment Factory, Felix & Paul and Ubisoft are accomplishing, among others. Among her Printemps numérique favourites, she mentions the MUTEK program, whichoffers a strong showcase of the international electronic-music scene, and Chromatic, which she is looking forward to attending. She is also intriguedby

the performances at Espace Libre. For families, she highlights Aurorae at the Planétarium,

and she encourages anyone who has not yet tried virtual reality to do so at Centre Phi, where headsets are available free of charge. On social media, she admits that it takes up a lot of her time. Sometimes it feels like a necessary evil and she would like to disappear from the map, but she also takes real pleasure in it. Social networks are a powerful way to reach an audience and, when used well, can help move things forward. They have democratized media production and changed relationships. They fascinate and excite her, while also

requiring collective and individual reflection. Six months ago, she turned off

all notifications so that she could choose the moment to connect instead of letting networks impose themselves at everymoment. In fashion, she hopes a revolution is slowly underway. She believes we are moving toward the end of disposable fashion and fast fashion because the environmental and social costs are too high. Clothing must be rethought to become smarter andmore durable. Very soon, rather than buying a dozen dresses a year, we may be able to buy one and download patterns according to our mood, as proposed by CuteCircuit. Near us,YingGao creates fascinating interactive garments, and she is equally impressed by Alexander McQueen’s 3D-printed dresses. With smart fibres and 3D printing, we may eventually become the creators of our own endlessly customizable clothes. Vanessa Pilon is also taking part in Leucan’s Shaved Head Challenge, and now is the time to encourage her.

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