Pique summer edition 2025
Courtesy of Compagnie ODD
Pique brings dynamic performances, thought-provoking exhibitions, and interactive installations to Ottawa
June 7, 2025
Arts Court, 67 Nicholas Street, Ottawa, ON
Tickets: thisispique.com/tickets
On June 7, 2025, Pique summer edition—the boldest annual installment of Debaser’s celebrated music and multi-arts festival series—takes over downtown Ottawa’s Arts Court complex. Featuring dynamic performances, thought-provoking exhibitions, and interactive installations across indoor and outdoor stages, Pique is a convergence of creativity and innovation that bridges international cultures with local communities. Celebrated for its curatorial eclecticism, Pique brings together techno innovation, queer cabaret, laid-back indie/alternative, glitch punk, convergences of tradition and futurism, participatory installations and lots more to the festival’s summer edition.
With 30+ artists presenting across 10 stages and exhibition spaces, indoors and outdoors, there is so much to experience at Pique! Admission is pay-what-you-can and all-ages.
Kablusiak, North Mart (akunnirun kuupak series), courtesy of Norberg Hall. This work will be featured as part of the exhibition ᐃᔨᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᔪᒍᑦ / ᑕᑯᓯᒪᔪᒍᑦ Ijilauqsimajugut / Takusimajugut (We were hidden / We are seen), curated by Aedan Corey
Explore a dynamic program of exhibitions opening at Pique summer edition. Taking over five unique spaces in the Arts Court—including the pedestrian-only Daly Avenue—this season’s programming delves into themes of Inuit gender and sexuality, the paradox of visibility for Black artists, collective worldbuilding, and the energy of street life, offering bold perspectives and immersive experiences throughout the festival.
Curated by Olivia Onuk and presented in partnership with the Ottawa Black Artists Kollective, Seen/Unseen is a multidisciplinary exhibition and artist talkback that examines the complex relationship Black artists have with visibility. Through performance, storytelling (music and poetry), media, and visual art by artists Aly Joy-Lily McDonald, Chyme, Dominique, LuCille Giwa, Luniverse.JPG and Yomi Orimoloye, the exhibition invites attendees into a space where seeing and being seen become an active, dynamic exchange.
ᐃᔨᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᔪᒍᑦ / ᑕᑯᓯᒪᔪᒍᑦ Ijilauqsimajugut / Takusimajugut (We were hidden / We are seen), curated by Aedan Corey and presented in partnership with SAW, seeks to voice the stories of Inuit identities beyond the gender binary. Through sculpture, prints, photography and more, this exhibition works toward contextualizing the changes within Inuit concepts of gender and sexuality, acknowledging the impacts of rapid post-contact cultural shifting on queer Inuit identities, and redefining and reclaiming what these identities mean. The exhibition features works by Kisa-Knickelbein, Taqialuq Nuna, Annie Pootoogook, Aghalingiak Ohokannoak, Jason Sikoak, Ningiukulu Teevee, Oviloo Tunnilie, James Ungalaq, Mark Kenneth Wood, Michael Yerxa and Yurak.
Danica Drago presents Pedal Potter. Image courtesy of the artist.
Out on the street, which will be closed to traffic for the festival, Right of Way is a pop-up program inspired by the movement and architecture of streetscapes, featuring visual art, installation, participatory art-making, dance and music. Featuring Pedal Potter by Danica Drago, an arts-practice intervention project that uses a bicycle-powered potter’s wheel to directly engage participants in the artist’s making process; a series of new original works by Ottawa-based Mexican artist and printmaker Guillermo Trejo installed on a bespoke scaffold gallery complete with hammock seating and a DJ booth; Jon McCurley’s Arguing Signs, in which two large traffic signs have reached their capacity to tolerate each other and get into an argument; and performances by contemporary dance improvisers Compagnie ODD and DJ sets presented by Produced by Youth and Pass the Vibes.
64ksana. Image courtesy of the artist.
Featuring performances and presentations by international and out-of-town artists including high-energy ghettotech trio HiTech (Detroit), Korean shamanic techno unit 64ksana, unapologetically bold lyricist Prado Monroe, lo-fi folksy songwriter Bells Larsen, glitch-industrialists FREE.99 (Pennsylvania), expansive electro-acoustic duo HxH (New York), contemporary Inuit throat-singers Silla (Nunavut), campy drag popstar BiG SiSSY, cutting-edge club DJ NASTY GLOSS, and visionary video artist MvB.
Bridging global underground communities with the local music scene, Pique will also feature local musicians including bedroom-pop purveyors fanclubwallet, avant-pop balladist Orchidae, feminist comedy outfit Small Fish, jersey club DJ lilfr1dge, art-rock quartet lady grey and the phantoms, unclassifiable selector Gothbitch, a B2B DJ set by Also Cool co-founders Flleur and Lamb Fatale, and an open-decks youth showcase co-presented by Produced by Youth and Pass the Vibes.
The Art Market returns to Pique summer edition featuring 25 participating artisans, makers, small press publishers. This season, expect an even broader showcase of creative talent highlighting emerging and established vendors alike.
As always, Pique is all ages and pay-what-you-can. The event site is accessible, and detailed accessibility notes are categorized on our website. Our EQUIPE harm reduction team will be on-site to support audience members, and our staff and volunteers are trained with harm reduction strategies to support audience members throughout the event.
As always, tickets to Pique are pay-what-you-can with a suggested price range of $45-75 (taxes and fees included), with subsidized tickets available when purchased online.
Contact
Rachel Weldon
Director, Debaser
rachel@debaser.ca
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