The New Brunswick Arts Board is an arm’s length arts funding agency with a legislated mandate to facilitate and promote the creation of art as well as administering funding programs for professional artists in the province.
Fredericton, December 3, 2025 – During its Annual Meeting held in Dieppe, the New Brunswick Arts Board (artsnb) elected Jason Guerrette as its new Chair. He succeeds Darren McLeod, who served in this role during the previous year.
New Executive Members
With Jason Guerrette (Edmundston) as Chair, the artsnb Executive committee also includes Phyllis Grant (Oinpegitjoig First Nation) as 1st Vice-Chair, Ysabelle Vautour (Fredericton) as 2nd Vice-chair, and Jalianne Li (Moncton), who remains Treasurer.
New Board Members
artsnb proudly welcomes new members Haqq Adéoyé (Riverview), Jonathan Roy (Caraquet), and Marcela Torres (Saint John). These new members succeed Darren McLeod (Saint John), César Suárez (Saint John), Domenic Bro (Tracadie-Sheila), and Vanessa Moeller (Moncton), whose mandates ended this year.
The rest of the Board is comprised of members Jennifer Bélanger (Moncton), and Jean-Pierre Caissie (Executive Director, artsnb, ex-officio). Find information on artsnb Board of Directors on our website.
artsnb’s New Chair
Jason Guerrette is a singer-songwriter from Madawaska. Trained in classical voice at Université de Moncton, he performed as a soloist in several operas at Capitol Theatre before making his mark in the popular music genre across New Brunswick and Québec.
A finalist of Star Académie in 2012, he shared the stage with several internationally renowned artists, including Céline Dion and Johnny Hallyday. A founding member of the electro-funk band Spoutnique, he has also toured in France with L’Acadie, un pays qui se raconte. In 2021, his single À l’abri des loups remained first place on the ARCANB Top 10 for five consecutive weeks. Jason is currently developing a new electronic music duo, Pop Rouge.
artsnb’s New Board Members
Originally from Benin, Haqq Adéoyé (Riverview) is a multidisciplinary artist and member of the Slam Acadie collective. His work, which combines slam poetry, theatre, filmmaking, and photography, explores themes such as personal development, self-acceptance, and well-being. He has represented his collective internationally, notably at a slam festival in Burkina Faso, at Les Éloizes, and in Côte d’Ivoire. He is also a member of the Association acadienne des artistes professionnel.le.s du Nouveau-Brunswick and the Regroupement des artistes cinéastes de la francophonie canadienne.
Jonathan Roy is a poet and cultural worker who lives in Caraquet. At Éditions Perce-Neige, he published the anthology Déchirures vers l’avenir (2025), and poetry books mélamine méduse (2023), Savèches à fragmentation (2019), and Apprendre à tomber (2012); the last two were awarded the Prix littéraire Antonine-Maillet-Acadie Vie. His works also take the form of artist’s books, songs, and other literary manifestations. In 2021, he took to the stage in Savèches, a play adapted from his work by the Théâtre populaire d’Acadie. Jonathan is the director of the Festival acadien de poésie and co-director of Perce-Neige’s poetry collection.
Marcela Torres (Saint John) is an artist, curator, and art historian originally from Argentina. Marcela has extensive curatorial experience at Casa Loma, and a solid background in the commercial art world through her role as Sales Associate at Galerie de Bellefeuille. She holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Fine Arts and Art History from Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina, and also studied Business Administration at York University. She was appointed to the Saint John Community Arts Board in 2025, and she is Curator Consultant for Special Exhibitions at Casa Loma.
About the New Brunswick Arts Board
An independent administrative funding agency for the development of the arts, the New Brunswick Arts Board (artsnb) is governed by a Board of nine voting members and two non-voting members. artsnb‘s mission is to manage public funds and engage with a network of partners in support of a diverse, thriving, and sustainable arts ecosystem across New Brunswick. artsnb encourages and celebrates the work of New Brunswick artists working in a broad range of disciplines and empower them to share their work throughout the province and beyond. More information on artsnb can be found on our website.
Funding for artsnb programs is provided through the Arts Development Trust Fund, which benefitted from an increase in 2024, and by the Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture. The department also allocates additional funding to the Artist in Residence program, as a response to the recommendations from the report of the Premier’s Task Force on the Status of the Artist.
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MEDIA CONTACT:
Audrée Hamelin-St-Amour, Communications Officer: comm@artsnb.ca or 506-259-9776
