Helen's Blog /

Having grown up in Canada, it was my pleasure to meet, on the occasion of the Rencontres Cinéma Paris/Berlin/Madrid, held in Paris, early December, the Head of the Québec Cinémathèque, Madame Yolande Racine. This accomplished lady holds an M.A. (Master of Arts) in Art History from the University of Montréal.

She began her career in museology in Canada, as Head of the Education Service at Montréal's Museum of Contemporary Art, then moving on to become Deputy Head of Conservation atthe Service of Temporary Exhibitions.

From 1982 through 1992, she worked at the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal as contemporary art conservation Officer. A laureate of the Prix d'excellence awarded by the Association of Canadian Museums, she also received a Special Citation from the Québec Museums Society for her creation of the Betty Goodwin Exhibition.

In 1993, Yolande returned to the Montreal Museum of Contemporary Art as Head of Multimedia Programmes. In this framework, she initiated and coordinated productions in the new media sectors of cinema, theatre, dance, music and poetry, starting up a residency program for artists of multidisciplinary concerns.

As Director General of La Pulperie de Chicoutimi, she has implemented a new organisational structure, integrating the former Museum of Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean with the Pulperie Historic Centre. Elaborating the plans for the future project, as well as the budget, to the tune of 10M$, Mme Racine gained the Prize of Excellence in Museum Management from the Association of Canadian Museums for her work in the accomplishment of this monumental project.

Back in Montréal, she became the Director of conservation, education, animation and technology and for special projects at Pointe-à-Callière, Montréal's museum of archaeology and history.

In March 2005, Yolande Racine was chosen to assume the position of Director General of the Cinémathèque québécoise.Yolande Racine has also been on the Board of the FIAF (International Federation of Film Archives) from 2005 through 2007 and on the Committee of the Trust for Preservation of Canadian Audiovisual from 2005 to 2008. She currently heads the Executive Board of the Mel Hoppenheim Cinema School of Concordia University and the Exhibition Centre of the University of Montréal. She also appears in the Canadian Who's Who and Who's Who of Canadian Women.