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Arts briefs

Help-Portrait for the holidays

 

Christmas is a time to give to others, especially those who've had a particularly tough year. Now, a few members of Whistler's artistic community are mobilizing to do just that with the help of a local business.

Four local photographers are taking part in a global photography project dubbed Help-Portrait. Celebrity photographer Jeremy Cowart started the event in hopes of mobilizing photographers around the world to use their talents to give back to their communities. Photographers find people in need and take their picture, and give them a copy (or copies). On Saturday, Dec. 12, photographers around the world will give families a chance to have something that is normally a luxury - a portrait.

This season, the event is making its way to Whistler thanks to local photographer Rich Glass, who discovered the Help-Portrait project through a blog and decided he wanted to host an event here in Whistler, joining with thousands of other photographers in cities around the world to put a smile on faces of the less fortunate.

"I have the power to do this," he explained, simply.

Glass, who also does charity work through The Troutsmen International Club of Leisure, has recruited three other Whistler photographers - Matt Walker, Mark Gribbon, and Nick Vail - to shoot families and individuals who are down on their luck and need a pick-me-up. The photographs will be done at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler Dec. 12, starting at 2 p.m. Rick Clare, the owner of One Hour Photo/Foto Source, has also stepped up to help out with the event, offering free prints to participants.

Anyone is welcome to come out and take part in the event - low income or not - but Glass and the rest of the photographers who are donating their time and talents ask that everyone who can afford it make a cash or food donation to the Whistler Food Bank. For more information contact richglass@mac.com.

 

Soul Funktion's seasonal show Dec. 11

'Tis also the season for song and dance, courtesy of Whistler's talented dance troupe, Soul Funktion Dance Studio.

For one night only, on Friday, Dec. 11, the studio's performance-based dance troupe will be showcasing The Magic Within, an original production created and directed by award-winning choreographer Heather Stremlaw. Thirty-one dancers between the ages of eight and 18 will take the stage to share their passion for dance with the community, bringing Stremlaw's magical world to the audience.

The performance takes place at MY Millennium Place, with a pre-show gala reception and silent auction at 6 p.m. and the show starting at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $__ for adults and $__ for children.

 

Calling all young cartoonists

Aspiring young artists who have suffered the itchy discomfort of eczema now have an opportunity to share their feelings with the rest of the world through their artwork, thanks to a new campaign launched by the Eczema Awareness, Support and Education (EASE) Program and a well-known Canadian cartoonist, Lynn Johnston, of the iconic For Better or For Worse cartoon series.

EASE, a national patient education program developed with the assistance of leading Canadian dermatologists, and Johnston are looking for talented Canadian artists aged 12 and under to illustrate their feelings about suffering with eczema for the first annual "My Life with Eczema" national art contest.

According to EASE, 12 to 25 per cent of Canadian children suffer from eczema and its accompanying pain and constant itch, which can interfere with sleep and school, cause low self-esteem and make children self-conscious about their appearance. Plus, eczema symptoms tend to worsen in the winter months.

The winner will receive a $1,500 Canada Savings Bond to go towards their future education, and have their art showcased in dermatology clinics across the country. Contest details and entry forms are available at www.eczemacanada.ca . Entries must be received by Tuesday, Dec. 29.

 

Kids of 2010 concert Dec. 15

There are just over two months to go until the opening ceremonies officially kick off the 2010 Games, Whistler kids are finally being given a chance to get into the spirit of things with an upcoming family concert featuring holiday performances designed to showcase cultures from around the world.

As part of the Kids of Whistler 2010 project, the Resort Municipality of Whistler is working with five local schools - Myrtle Phillip, Spring Creek, Whistler Secondary School, ...cole La Passerelle and Whistler Waldorf - to build excitement and enthusiasm for the Olympics. Schools and classes have been assigned specific nations that will be visiting the community in 2010, creating a "virtual trip around the world" for the audience.

Gerri Galloway, Principal of Spring Creek Community School, explained that while the high school students will be playing more of a behind-the-scenes role in the performance, all of the elementary schools have been assigned countries that will likely be competing in the Games: Austria, Netherlands, Switzerland, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Germany, the United States, Ghana, France, Russia, Japan, Kosovo, Norway and Finland.

"The point is that the schools are dong a social studies project regarding the countries," Galloway explained, adding that classes will be performing a song that represents the country, and wearing that country's colours for the performance.

Galloway said the excitement seems to be building as the children learn more and more about their assigned country.

The concert takes place at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 15 at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler, and while the event is free and open to the public, this is the first time that all of the local schools have performed one holiday concert together, so organizers are expecting a strong turnout from family members.