Maisonneuve, my favorite magazine in Canada, recently announced that it will be shedding its current incarnation and become a Montreal-based city magazine. I must admit that I’m saddened by the news, but I can fully understand why this move needed to be made in order for Maisonneuve to remain not only relevant, but financially viable.

I currently read Maisonneuve because it represents everything that an educated and cultured magazine should be: the writing is excellent, the visual design is above par, and the content as a whole is perfectly geared towards urban culture and the country’s vibrant art scene. The magazine is an excellent compendium of the untold stories from the streets, lofts, theatres, concert halls, galleries, and parking lots of Canada, and it offers a fresh and critical perspective to the goings-on in all spheres of this country’s political, social, and cultural structures.

Maisonneuve becoming a Montreal-centered magazine will necessarily mean a shift in perspective and outlook to stay in line with the shift in the target demographic. It will also mean a loss of an avenue for aspiring writers and urban chroniclers (like myself) outside the Montreal area to get published, as our content will be less relevant to the magazine’s new audience. I will still keeping reading Maisonneuve, as I am sure the writing will continue to be topical and interest-piquing, but I rue the fact that the new region-centricism of the magazine will lead to a loss of opportunity for artists, photographers, and writers that aspired to contribute to a national magazine that challenged ordinary thinking.

Of course, in the end, I’m just jealous that Montreal is getting Maisonneuve and we’re still stuck with Toronto Life here.