I am pleased to convey my warmest greetings to everyone participating in the 31st Accès Asie Festival in Montreal. I would also like to welcome the guest artists who have come from abroad.

This event offers a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the richness and diversity of Asian cultures. Creators, performers, authors, chefs, and many others will showcase their talents and invite the public to learn more about the heritage and history of the countries they represent through the performing arts, literature and culinary arts.

I would like to thank the members of the organizing committee and the volunteers for their commitment to promoting the diversity of Asian heritage. You can take pride in your contributions to the richness of our nation’s multicultural fabric.

I wish you all an enjoyable festival and continued success.

Art brings people together—it unites us, rallies us around shared ideas, and reconnects us to our common humanity.

Its impact is felt in every community: art strengthens our sense of belonging, supports local economies, and enriches daily life here in Canada and around the world. This is the power of a dynamic and resilient arts sector: it shapes us, shapes the world around us, and shapes our future.

The Festival Accès Asie brings this promise to life by connecting arts audiences with the artists who create the works. The Canada Council for the Arts is proud to support the 31st edition of the Festival Accès Asie and congratulates everyone involved in making it happen.

Marking the arrival of Asian Heritage Month, Accès Asie opens our hearts and minds to new ways of seeing, understanding and experiencing Montréal.

Now an essential fixture in our cultural landscape, the Festival has been highlighting the depth and diversity of contemporary works by artists of Asian descent for over 30 years. By bringing together practices from a wide range of artistic disciplines, it creates spaces where stories intersect, identities are expressed and imaginations run free.

The Festival’s strength lies in its ability to shine a light on perspectives that are still underrepresented in the public sphere and to make them an integral part of the city’s arts scene. Every year, Accès Asie helps broaden our view of the world, strengthen ties between communities and foster a dialogue that is essential for a city that is both ambitious and inclusive.

The Festival’s many partnerships with iconic Montréal institutions attest to the pivotal role it plays in the arts scene. That synergy enhances the accessibility of works across the city’s many neighbourhoods and supports the emergence of innovative practices that put Montréal on the map!

The Conseil des arts de Montréal is proud to have been a partner of Accès Asie for many years. As this latest edition gets under way, we invite you to celebrate a month of May rich in discoveries, encounters and creations that inspire and bring people together!

In an increasingly complex and sometimes polarized world, ideas rarely emerge in isolation. They take shape through dialogue, the crossing of perspectives, and the sharing of viewpoints. The CALQ is very proud to support the Festival Accès Asie, which reaffirms the importance of artistic creation that is open to the world.

By bringing together emerging and established artists from diverse Asian diaspora communities, the festival actively contributes to fostering a culture of listening, curiosity, and dialogue among perspectives. I would like to warmly congratulate its Artistic Director, Ziya Tabassian, for the inclusive and interdisciplinary vision that drives this edition, as well as all those who make this event possible.

I hope that this festival will be a source of inspiring discoveries for audiences and a space for meaningful dialogue. Enjoy the festival!