A recent and forward-looking arrival on the Breton festival scene, Art Rock festival descends in mid-to-late May on the area of St-Brieuc and Côtes-d’Armor with its blend of, well, art and rock. What this means in practice is that, alongside a well-considered array of acts (from the Congolese Konono No 1 to Brighton’s Go Team), Art Rock also stages performance and visual art events, exhibits, discussions and lectures.
The annual Art Rock festival in May is the opening act of the Breton festival season, which has as many episodes as a TV soap! Taking place at Whitsuntide, every year its followers make the pilgrimage to St-Brieuc, a town named after a saint and the capital of Côtes d’Armor, to worship at the shrine of rock icons - or discover pop music's new Messiah. Alain Bashung and Sonic Youth, Franz Ferdinand and Block Party, Royal de Luxe and Fura del Baus… all names that remind us of the vim and vigour of St-Brieuc's Wild Rose organisation, which turns the town centre into a Mecca for arts and culture every year. Because as its name suggests, this is no mere music festival: it offers dance, theatre, circus skills and contemporary visual arts too. In the covered market on Place Poulain Corbion, at the Grand Théâtre or in the Forum, every May, Art Rock offers a fabulous blend of, well, art and...rock!
