Celebrations planned for Valley Trail public art
The RMOW and the Public Art Committee are inviting the community to celebrate the completion of one project and the start of another this weekend.
A sculpture designed by Whistler artist Penny Martyn clad with over 200 tiles painted by community members will receive a ribbon cutting and cake ceremony on Friday, May 13 at 4 p.m.
In addition to the community tiles, the sculpture features interpretive elements describing the life cycle of the Kokanee salmon.
The sculpture has been installed on the Valley Trail trailhead near the River of Golden Dreams at the end of Lorimer Road, and is the first piece of public art installed outside Whistler Village.
On Saturday, May 14 at 1 p.m. a ceremony will take place marking renowned Haida carver Lawrence Knowles’s move to a public work site in Rebagliati Park.
Knowles will be carving a basalt sculpture of a bear throughout the summer months. The public art piece will eventually be installed at a site along the Valley Trail.
Knowles began the blocking process on the bear last month at the municipal works yards. To celebrate the move Knowles will reveal the work-in-progress and describe his approach to traditional aboriginal carving. The afternoon event will include a cake and First Nations dancers.
New night for The Art Room
The Art Room, a weekly community open studio held in the art room at Whistler Secondary school, will be moving to Tuesday nights starting May 17.
The Art Room debuted last month as an initiative of local art instructor Barbara Hirano in partnership with the RMOW. Community members can drop in and work on their own projects or learn a new craft through demonstrations by local professional artists and artisans working in a variety of media. In its short history The Art Room has hosted demonstrations of painting, pottery, glass bead making, photography, printmaking, basket weaving and more.
The Art Room will present one last Thursday night studio session tonight (May 12) featuring demonstrations of paper marbling by Theresa Mura, tile-making with Penny Martyn and fly-tying with Jason Klimock, before moving to Tuesday nights starting May 17, and running weekly until June 28.
All Art Room nights take place from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. for a drop-in fee of $6, with an additional fee charged for clay.
For more information contact Whistler Parks & Recreation at 604-902-1433.
Whistler Arts Council calls for ArtWalk Submissions
The Whistler Arts Council is calling for submissions for the second annual summer ArtWalk taking place July 1-31.
The village-wide showcase will feature art displays in approximately 20 venues organized along a mapped route. Both traditional galleries and non-traditional gallery spaces such as restaurants, hotel lobbies, retail shops and other businesses will host displays.
On Friday, July 8 ArtWalk venues will host concurrent opening receptions to kick off the month-long event, featuring artists in attendance and performances by local musicians.
ArtWalk is open to Sea to Sky corridor artists working in visual arts media such as sculpture, painting, photography and fibre art.
The submission deadline for both artists and interested host galleries is May 31, 2005. Host galleries will select their featured artist(s) with efforts made to match the right artists with the appropriate venue.
Application forms for both artists and host venues are available from the Whistler Arts Council by calling 604-938-9221 or by e-mailing events@whistlerartscouncil.com.
Arts Council AGM approaching
Other upcoming Arts Council events include the organization’s annual general meeting, which will take place on Wednesday, May 25 at 7 p.m. in the Upper Lobby at MY Millennium Place.
The meeting will include an overview of the new strategic plan, a review of 2004 events, a presentation of financial statements and election of a new board of directors for 2005/06. The board maintains three appointed positions from stakeholder groups Tourism Whistler, the RMOW and Whistler-Blackcomb with the rest of the directors elected by the membership for two-year terms.
Both members and non-members of the Arts Council are welcome to attend the meeting, although only members will be allowed to vote for the board of directors.
The Whistler Arts Council was enacted 20 years ago with a mandate to promote the growth of the arts in Whistler.
Those seeking information about becoming a board member or about this year’s AGM are encouraged to contact the Whistler Arts Council at 604-938-9221 or by e-mailing info@whistlerartscouncil.com before May 20.
