Travel: Chris Donovan photographs La Tintamarre
When I came across Chris Donovan’s photo story “Vive L’Acadie” I was drawn in immediately. His photos of La Tintamarre celebration were bursting with bright colours, smiling faces and vibrant cultural pride. Maybe it’s because I have some Acadian heritage (and Brayon, Québécois, and French...), maybe it’s because our Anglophone community doesn’t seem to have the equivalent in terms of cultural displays, but there is something stirring about these photos and the celebration they represent. The Tintamarre is basically a giant parade that happens on National Acadian Day where everyone gets decked out in red, white and blue with a spash of yellow to march up and down streets making as much noise as possible.
Chris drove up the coast to see the decorated houses, stopping to ask people if he could take their photos. He came home with more than just photographs, but a deeper understanding of the Acadian identity. Also an invitation to a great big Acadian feast!
What prompted him to take this cultural road trip was equal parts passion and curiosity. One side of his family is francophone Acadian from Bathurst, but Chris didn’t learn the language growing up. “I’ve seen firsthand how language and culture can fall off within a generation, and part of what motivated this project is that it’s important to acknowledge the preservation of culture” says Chris. He also believes that some of the ignorance in southern NB about the francophone community is the lack of exposure to francophone culture and language. With these photos he wants to show the sheer volume of how many Acadians live here in New Brunswick, which is what makes our province so unique as a bilingual province.
"The Tintamarre is meant to show the world that Acadians not only continue to exist in New Brunswick, but to thrive in the only Canadian province that has both English and French as its official languages" says Chris.
These photos show just that.
Marcel Richard sits outside of the mechanic shop that he and his family runs in their backyard, in Rogersville, NB. The land was purchased by Richard's father in 1938 and has remained in the family ever since.
Chantal Cadieux shows off an Acadian flag hanging from her cottage in Shediac Cape, NB. According to Cadieux, the house is over 250 years old and was built by early Acadian fur traders.
Eveline LeBlanc sits in front of a plate of rappie pie, poutine rapee, chiar, fricot, goose tongue, and pet de soeur at a traditional Acadian dinner they hold for about 30 members of extended family in their garage every August 14. Family travels from as far as British Columbia to take part in the tradition.
J.C. Benoit poses in front if his home in Tabusintac, NB, alongside his caregiver Chantal Breau and her son Jonathon Breau who decorated Benoit's home for the celebrations of National Acadian Day.
Family members snap photos at a family gathering in Memramcook, NB, on the eve of National Acadian Day.
Rodney Kail poses in front of the house in which he has resided in Acadieville, NB, for the past 40 years. "There's no work here, but I can't bring myself to leave," said Kail, who has consistently travelled to either Moncton or Miramichi for work.
A man participating in the Tintamarre in Caraquet, NB, bangs a stick against a beat up pan. Although noise-making instruments are now sold specifically for the event, improvised devices such as this one were traditionally used in the Tintamarre.
A man shows off his Acadian heritage during the Tintamarre in Caraquet, NB.
A participant in the 2016 Tintamarre in Caraquet blows a whistle as the crowd attempts to make as much noise as possible.
Eveline LeBlanc emerges with a cooler to pack traditional Acadian food for her expat relatives in Toronto and the end of an Acadian feast. Eveline and her husband Martin invite their extended family to enjoy an evening of traditional Acadian food at their house in Memramcook, NB, every August 14. On the wall shows the lineage of both Matin and Eveline's families and how they are actually related 10 generations back.
A woman raises her Acadian flag above the crowd during the 2016 Tintamarre in Caraquet, NB.
Chris is currently studying photojournalism in Belleville, Ontario. You can find out more about his work on his website: chrisdonovanphoto.com