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Children’s Art Festival celebrates 25 years

Whistler’s longest running summer festival, the Whistler Children’s Art Festival, is celebrating its 25 th year this summer. The weekend of arts and entertainment, which will take place in Creekside on July 12 and 13 from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.

Whistler’s longest running summer festival, the Whistler Children’s Art Festival, is celebrating its 25 th year this summer.

The weekend of arts and entertainment, which will take place in Creekside on July 12 and 13 from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m., features a wide range of performances and activities to get children’s creative juices flowing.

Last year’s festival featured a variety of wacky and outrageous acts, from the Vancouver Aquarium’s sea-loving squad, Bobs & Lolo, the First Nations storyteller and musician, Art Napoleon, and the magical musical stylings of Zany Zack.

“The 2007 festival was a hit,” said Traci Despatis, event manager of the Whistler Children’s Art Festival. “Not only did our main stage performers entertain, but our roving performers kept the crowds captivated all week despite the beach-enticing weather.”

The festival’s Scotiabank Workshops also offer kids a chance to dig in and get their hands dirty, with 65 hands-on workshops in sketching, dance, drumming, mural painting, dress-up, photography, wood carving and chocolate dipping; something will appeal to all ages and interests.

Entrance to the festival grounds is $5 per day for children over the age of two, while parents play for free.

A full schedule of workshops and performances will be available by mid-June at www.whistlerartscouncil.com .

 

Calling all artists…

The Whistler Arts Council (WAC) wants you! Well, only if you’re a talented local artist.

WAC is asking visual artists and artisans within the Sea to Sky corridor to apply for the fifth annual ArtWalk, which will feature a variety of paintings, photos, multimedia, fibre arts, sculpture, pottery and jewelry throughout Whistler Village from July 1 to Aug. 31.

The ArtWalk walking tour aims to connect local businesses, like cafes, bookstores, retail outlets and hotels, with the local arts and create opportunities for the artists to showcase their work in high-traffic venues.

Last year, ArtWalk included 30 venues and 50 artists.

Interested applicants must provide three to eight photos of their work on a hard disk or in a high-quality portfolio, half of which should be images they intend to display at ArtWalk. Deadline for applications is Monday, May 5 at 4 p.m.

And if you won’t be around to exhibit your work this summer, you may be interested in participating in the 20 th Bizarre Bazaar, set to take place on Friday, Nov. 28 and Saturday, Nov. 29 at the Telus Whistler Conference Centre.

The arts council has also issued a call for artists for their annual artisan market. The two-day event attracts more than 5,000 visitors each year, with over 100 artisans from the Sea to Sky corridor and throughout the province selling their hand-made crafts in a festive, friendly atmosphere, with lots of local entertainment and a silent auction.

Bizarre Bazaar was first created as a fundraiser for the Whistler Children’s Art Festival, but has grown immensely over the years, and now focuses on providing a venue for artists and artisans to showcase their work during the winter months.

The event is juried, and products must be mainly handcrafted, so artists interested in participating must submit clear photos of their work and a photo or sketch of their booth set-up by Friday, Aug. 22. At least 65 per cent of participating artists will be from the Sea to Sky corridor.

For detailed application guidelines on either event, visit www.whistlerartscouncil.com .

 

Kids croon in spring concert

This year, the Whistler Children’s Chorus, a 55-member choir ranging in age from six to 18 years, will join voices with the Kamloops Thompson Honour choir for their spring concert.

Together, 105 children will perform in this free concert on Friday, April 18, at 7:30 p.m. at Our Lady of the Mountain Catholic Church.

 

What’s in store for 2009?

After a successful seven weeks of cultural programming this year, the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad committee is working on the program for 2009.

So far, organizers have managed to secure two major international events for next year’s Cultural Olympiad — the world-renowned United Kingdom’s Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Orchestra and Israel’s Batsheva Dance Company will make their debuts in Vancouver next February.

Organizers are also issuing an open call for artists’ proposals for next year’s Cultural Olympiad, even developing a new artist registry for co-presentation proposals, to ensure that Canada’s arts community is integrally involved in the upcoming activities.

“Culture plays a powerful role in the Olympic and Paralympic Movements and our Cultural Olympiad will be a meeting place for artists from around the globe,” Burke Taylor, VANOC vice president of Culture and Celebrations, said in a recent press release.

“As we create this international stage, we are partnering with Canada’s creative community to present performances and exhibitions that offer an expansive world view and showcase the extraordinary range and calibre of our artists.”

This year’s Cultural Olympiad featured more than 80 free and ticketed events in Vancouver and Whistler, that drew crowds of almost 170,000 people. The 2009 Cultural Olympiad will run from February 1 to March 21, 2009, with a full schedule of programming to be announced this fall.