OCAC Bursary winners

Gavin and ChristinaThe Oliver Community Arts Council recently awarded two bursaries of $500 each to 2016 graduates from Southern Okanagan Secondary School: Gavin Buttar and Christina Raposo.

Gavin Buttar is perhaps best known for his on-stage charisma, both as a lead in SOSS Drama productions and as an Oliver Ambassador. He provided able assistance during the quiz portion of the arts council’s Community Christmas Concert last December. Christina Raposo is a talented visual artist, and had won previous awards in English and French, and had been the junior grades award winner in fine arts.  Both graduates were among many talented artists displaying their work in the SOSS Year-end Art Show at the Oliver Public Library on June 15. Both were awarded one of twelve District Authority Scholarships, for $1250.

Congratulations to you both!

Aaaagh! The Ripoff Artists are coming!

The_Scream2The Ripoff Artists are SCREAMING in anticipation of this year’s Ripoff challenge!!! This year’s artwork, The Scream by Edvard Munch, will have everyone shrieking with glee!

This also marks the tenth Ripoff Artist challenge! Besides the usual skullduggery of ripping off a famous artist, the group is showing works from all their previous challenges. AND, for the first time ever, many works will be for sale! Come celebrate with the artists, and take home a piece of history.

The opening reception will be on Monday, July 11 from 6 to 8, and will feature the wines of Montakarn winery, music by Brian Mapplebeck, and a Norwegian-style smorgasbord spread in honour of Edvard Munch. See, with your own eyes, the many works created by this talented group of South Okanagan artists over the past 9 years.

Throughout the week, the show will remain open, while the Ripoff Artists will also carry out their usual shenanigans in the Studio building, ripping off Munch’s famous image of The Scream (itself one of the most-stolen artworks in history). The usual suspects will be there: Enid Baker, Tara Hovanes, Kurt Hutterli, Terry Irvine, Barb Levant, Norberto Rodriguez de la Vega, Marion Trimble, JoAnn Turner and Russell Work. Between them, this motley crew will tackle collage, mixed media, fabric and fibre arts, acrylic painting, 3 dimensional assemblage and furniture painting. In addition, this year the group will welcome guest artist Bethany Handfield, an encaustic and mixed media artist from Penticton! With a group this cunning and talented, you never know what else they might be up to! Come and see for yourself!

Steal away to the Quail’s Nest Arts Centre, 5840 Airport Road in Oliver, during the week of July 11 to 16. The retrospective show and sale will be open in Big Blue 10-2 Tuesday to Friday, while the gang will be hard at work in the Studio building everyday from Tuesday through Saturday between 10 and 3. It’ll be a scream!

The Ripoff Artists thank the Oliver Community Arts Council for their generous support.