Shhh! Artists busy at work… How about YOU?

We know there are many artists out there already working on their submissions to the Fall Art Show and Sale. How about YOU? There’s still time to send in your entry form! The deadline for the form is September 9, 2011.

The theme is “Outside the Box”, and can be interpreted literally or figuratively. There may be an actual box somewhere in your creation, or perhaps the “box” is more of a metaphorical construct. Maybe what you create reflects how you are thinking outside the normal parameters, or outside your usual medium or perspective. The theme is meant to celebrate what is quirky, inventive, freed from constraint, or just plain different! What’s outside YOUR box? 

For an entry form, visit Lauralee’s Treasure Cellar on Main Street or the Oliver Visitor Centre. Email OliverCAC @gmail.com to ask for a copy emailed to you or simply download the form here by clicking on the link. 2011 FASS Entry Form Print out on one sheet of 8x 11 using both sides of the page, and fold in half.

It’s also under “Forms” at the top of this screen.

The Fall Art Show and Sale is the arts council’s largest event of the year, visited by hundreds of locals and tourists. Don’t miss this opportunity to showcase your artwork!

Artists: Feeling stuck in a box?

Calling All Artists! Fall Art Show and Sale

Pick up your Fall Art Show and Sale entry form and get busy creating!

The Fall Art Show and Sale is on Saturday October 1 and Sunday October 2 at the Oliver Community Centre.  The theme this year is “Outside the Box”.  Artists are invited to interpret that theme in any number of ways, both literally and figuratively, as suggested by some of the images here. 

Artists are invited to enter in eight categories: 

(1) Watercolour Paintings, (2) Oil Paintings, (3) Acrylic Paintings, (4) Fibre Arts, (5) Three Dimensional, (6) Photography, (7) Other Media (“altered” photographic processes, drawings, encaustic, mixed media, etc.), and (8) Emerging artists under 18 years

Awards will be presented in each category and one award will be given for “Best Interpretation of the Theme”.

Entry forms are available by clicking this link: 2011 FASS Entry Form or by going to “Forms” listed above. You can also pick one up at Lauralee’s Treasure Cellar on Main Street, the Oliver Visitor Information Centre (CPR building),  Oliver Art Gallery on Main Street, and  the Quail’s Roost Gallery (Rustico Cellars). Copies are also available at the Quail’s Nest Arts Centre or by emailing the arts council at olivercac @gmail.com.

So… what’s outside YOUR box?

Oliver Art Gallery Grand Opening May 25

The Oliver Art Gallery, located on Oliver’s Main Street,  holds its Grand Opening on Wednesday May 25 from 1 to 7 p.m.

The gallery is run as an artists’ co-operative. Artists include  Sandra Albo, Shannon Ford, Barb Hillier, Brad Hillis, Michael Arne Jorden, Dale Matthews, Arlie Richards, Jane Scheffler, Denise Soule (left), Steve Staresina, George Traicheff, Roger Ulasovetz, Ivanna Zita,  pen and ink artist Sandy Boblin, and photographer Paul Eby. 

The art gallery provides exhibition space for local artists from Summerland to Osoyoos, and an inviting place for art lovers to visit and enjoy. The location takes advantage of highway exposure on Oliver’s busy main street. Artists hope the colourful venue will catch the eye of motorists and summer strollers, both tourists and locals.

Artist Steve Staresina, a driving force behind the establishment of the new gallery, rounded up a group of like-minded artists who put their time and energy into creating a beautiful space with new paint, tile, walls and lighting.

“This really is a group effort,” maintains Staresina. “It is all of the artists working together that is making this possible”.  Staresina (left) teaches regular art classes at the Quail’s Nest Art Centre, and together with Leza MacDonald, painted the mural at the Oliver Kiwanis Market.

“The arts make up over 30 percent of Canada’s GDP,” says Staresina, “and I am determined to bring that into the open in this community that I live in.”

 

The Grand Opening includes appetizers, beverages, and entertainment. The artists  invite you to experience the relaxation and pleasure of being surrounded by original artwork (such as that of Shannon Ford, left), which will delight and draw you in with the imagination, colour and the imagery of each piece.

Oliver Art Gallery 
34848 – 97th Street, Oliver, BC
Email: office @ oliverartgallery.ca
Telephone: 778 439 3320
http://oliverartgallery.ca

Lake-to-Lake Studio Tour this Summer

Wondering what to do to please yourself—-or your guests—in the sunny summer days ahead? A visit to an artist’s studio can make a great outing, paired with a day of wine touring or just savouring the spectacular landscape we enjoy here in the South Okanagan.

A group of 12 local artists, including encaustic artist Thea Haubrich, a member of the Oliver Community Arts Council,  have teamed up to offer a Studio Tour. They will open their studios to the public from May till October. Taking their cue from the successful self-guided studio tour offered last year by artists on the Naramata Bench, the South Okanagan “Lake-to-Lake” artists are extending the possibilities for everyone to explore art in the place where it is created. (And, by the way, the “Art on the Naramata Bench” Studio Tour is up and running again this year, so with the addition of this new Tour Route, there are studios lined up all the way from Naramata to Vaseux Lake, just waiting for you to come in and say hello!)

In the new “Lake-to-Lake” Studio Tour Route, the twelve artists offer a journey along the ‘Corkscrew Drive Wine Trail’, which takes you from Penticton along hauntingly lovely Skaha Lake via Eastside Road and the Oliver Ranch Road, to Vaseux Lake.

Studio visits are an unusual and colourful way to meet the artists and their work ‘on home ground’. You can meet the artists, see how they use their tools and work-space — and witness for yourself the work behind the works!

You’ll encounter artists working in a wide variety of media. Besides Thea’s work in hot beeswax, there are painters, a potter, a sculptor, a photographer, one working with gourds and another encaustic artist! They are all keen to welcome you and happy to share with you how they do what they do.

To get you started: you’ll find brochures at your nearest visitors’ centre, wineries, hotels/motels, bookstores, local libraries and galleries. You can also download the brochure and tour map from http://bit.ly/jC39sp The tour map (part of Google maps) lists all participating artists, their locations, contact information, and links to websites.

It’s simple to plan your tour. Decide which studios you’d like to see, check the hours of opening, and set out. As you travel the route, watch for the Studio Tour signs telling you that the artist is “In” (or call ahead). Visiting an artist in the special atmosphere of a working studio is a wonderful way to explore the Valley’s treasures. Enjoy your valley touring, and expand your art collection through personal connections with the artists.

In other news, Haubrich has recently won the competition for the cover art in Okanagan Art Work magazine’s fifth anniversary issue (May 2011).  Go to this link for more information and to see her winning submission: http://www.s2sartworks.com/MayCoverArt.html

To top it off, she won second place as well! Congratulations Thea!

More about Thea Haubrich’s encaustic art can be found at these sites:

Web: http://www.encaustic.ca
Online store: http://www.encaustic.ca/shop/html/
Fine Art: http://www.theahaubrich.com
Blog: http://encausticcanada.wordpress.com/

"Those Were the Days" at 2010 Fall Art Show and Sale

those-were-the-days“Those Were the Days” is the theme chosen for the 27th annual Fall Art Show and Sale, October 2 and 3, 2010. The Oliver Community Arts Council has been planning this year’s event with inspiration drawn from the Oliver and District Heritage Society.

Museum director Darryl Mackenzie is thrilled about the collaboration between the two organizations on the art show. For him, art and history are a natural pairing: “It is important to reflect on our heritage from time to time. What are the sights, sounds and stories that we want to keep alive in our collective memory? How do we connect with the landscape? Are there special places that make us feel we are ‘home’?”

Artists are encouraged to begin creating their entries as soon as possible. The Oliver arts council intends the theme to be general enough to inspire the widest possible creativity. Some artists may take the opportunity to delve into local history by visiting the Oliver Heritage Museum and Archives or the regional library. But Mackenzie brainstorms a few other ideas: “When we use the theme ‘Those were the days’, we can let our imagination run wild. What days are we referring to? The 1880s? 1920s? How about something that happened last week that we will look fondly on in the future?” Besides the area’s pioneer history, an artist may be inspired by their own childhood, a favourite personal memory, or even a fanciful revisionist view of their favourite historical period.

The Fall Art Show and Sale accepts entries from all media including painting, photography, fibre arts, mixed media, and three-dimensional (which includes sculpture, leather work, pottery, woodwork, jewelry, metalwork, and other objets d’art). A special category, Emerging Artists, encourages submissions from youth 19 and under. Although the majority of artists reside in the South Okanagan, the show and sale is open to all artists across BC. Based on the number of entries, the Oliver Community Arts Council reserves the right to limit and jury submissions. Voting for winners, however, is entirely done by public ballot. All category winners and an overall Best in Show receive awards.

The Fall Art Show and Sale has been held in conjunction with the Festival of the Grape for several years. The two-day art show has grown to include live jazz music, a classy silent auction, refreshments, and exhibits of artists at work. The event attracts hundreds of visitors each year. This fall, the arts council anticipates an historical display from the Oliver and District Heritage Society will be a crowd pleaser in the non-competitive portion of the show. The silent auction will continue the same theme, with antique objects offered for bid.

Entry forms will be available at Handworks Gallery and on line at www.oliverartscouncil.org by the third week of April. Deadline for submissions will be the second week of September. For more information about the Fall Art Show and Sale, or for an emailed entry form, artists may contact olivercac@gmail.com.

“Those Were the Days” at 2010 Fall Art Show and Sale

those-were-the-days“Those Were the Days” is the theme chosen for the 27th annual Fall Art Show and Sale, October 2 and 3, 2010. The Oliver Community Arts Council has been planning this year’s event with inspiration drawn from the Oliver and District Heritage Society.

Museum director Darryl Mackenzie is thrilled about the collaboration between the two organizations on the art show. For him, art and history are a natural pairing: “It is important to reflect on our heritage from time to time. What are the sights, sounds and stories that we want to keep alive in our collective memory? How do we connect with the landscape? Are there special places that make us feel we are ‘home’?”

Artists are encouraged to begin creating their entries as soon as possible. The Oliver arts council intends the theme to be general enough to inspire the widest possible creativity. Some artists may take the opportunity to delve into local history by visiting the Oliver Heritage Museum and Archives or the regional library. But Mackenzie brainstorms a few other ideas: “When we use the theme ‘Those were the days’, we can let our imagination run wild. What days are we referring to? The 1880s? 1920s? How about something that happened last week that we will look fondly on in the future?” Besides the area’s pioneer history, an artist may be inspired by their own childhood, a favourite personal memory, or even a fanciful revisionist view of their favourite historical period.

The Fall Art Show and Sale accepts entries from all media including painting, photography, fibre arts, mixed media, and three-dimensional (which includes sculpture, leather work, pottery, woodwork, jewelry, metalwork, and other objets d’art). A special category, Emerging Artists, encourages submissions from youth 19 and under. Although the majority of artists reside in the South Okanagan, the show and sale is open to all artists across BC. Based on the number of entries, the Oliver Community Arts Council reserves the right to limit and jury submissions. Voting for winners, however, is entirely done by public ballot. All category winners and an overall Best in Show receive awards.

The Fall Art Show and Sale has been held in conjunction with the Festival of the Grape for several years. The two-day art show has grown to include live jazz music, a classy silent auction, refreshments, and exhibits of artists at work. The event attracts hundreds of visitors each year. This fall, the arts council anticipates an historical display from the Oliver and District Heritage Society will be a crowd pleaser in the non-competitive portion of the show. The silent auction will continue the same theme, with antique objects offered for bid.

Entry forms will be available at Handworks Gallery and on line at www.oliverartscouncil.org by the third week of April. Deadline for submissions will be the second week of September. For more information about the Fall Art Show and Sale, or for an emailed entry form, artists may contact olivercac@gmail.com.

Summer Studio: Colourful July!

summer-studio-2009-web

Dyeing for their Art: Fabric  Artists Kick Off Summer Studio

Colour is not something seen with the eye, but something spun, woven, and dyed. Colour becomes three-dimensional under the talented hands of the Desert Sage Spinners and Weavers. The Guild is eager to demonstrate the richness and variety of their craft during the first week of Summer Studio, July 6 -11, at the Quail’s Nest Arts Centre.

Summer Studio, a series of weekly displays, workshops and demonstrations of local art and craft, opens July 6 and runs into August. Art comes alive in this Oliver Community Arts Council program. The program operates like a studio rather than a gallery. In addition to viewing finished pieces, visitors can watch art in progress as artists demonstrate their techniques.

Every Summer Studio week opens with a public reception on Mondays 6 – 8 p.m. The casual receptions have become a popular venue to bring house guests and friends to enjoy a relaxed evening of art, food, and music. Public displays and demonstrations run Tuesdays to Saturdays 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Desert Sage Spinners and Weavers will be demonstrating a variety of techniques during their week. Nuno felting, a Japanese art form, will be demonstrated on Tuesday July 7. As Guild member Gail Erickson explains, “The Nuno technique felts loose wool onto a silk or gauze background. We experimented with this skill earlier in the year, and are ready to demonstrate it to the public.” On Thursday July 9 the guild will be busy wet felting, and on Friday and Saturday will be up to their elbows in natural dyes. “These aren’t just demonstrations,” says Erickson. “It’s all hands on! We encourage the public to come out and try it for themselves.”

The popular Wednesday Kids’ Days encourage children to experiment with that week’s artistic medium, but geared to children’s skill level and interest. The Spinners and Weavers are considering two crafts for their Kids’ Day on July 8: weaving on cardboard looms or some form of dyeing activity. Programmed Kids’ Day activties run 10 – 12 noon Wednesdays, but children are welcome to visit any time. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

 Upcoming displays include the Oliver Sagebrushers, a fine art club (July 13 – 18) and The RipOff Artists, a multimedia artists collective who interpret famous works of art (July 10 – 25). in past years, the RipOffs have exhibited their interpretations of Van Gogh’s “Cypresses” and Gustav Klimt’s “Emilie Floge”. The RipOffs will be inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe’s painting “Pink Tulip”.

 All opening receptions, displays, demonstrations and Kids’ Days are free and open to the public. The Quail’s Nest Arts Centre is located just west of the Oliver airport at 34274 – 95th Street. For more information about Summer Studio, call arts council rep Penelope Johnson (498-0183), the Quail’s Nest Arts Centre (485-0088), or check the weekly Chronicle ads.