Oak Bay welcomes visiting artists for the popular annual Bowker Creek Brush Up.
“We felt that maybe it was being a bit too insular, we were getting calls from other areas,” Claire Christinel, a member of the Oak Bay Community Artists’ Society that hosts the annual event. “Victoria’s a small town so there are artists from outside our area that are well-known.”
The annual event generally draws about 40 to 45 artists painting and selling works onsite alongside a handful of community organizations and food vendors.
“People love the event because it’s not overwhelming but enough variety and people that you can spend some time there,” she said, adding with her artists eye how the dappled sun and creekside venue draws the crowd. “It is kind of a special environment that we have there.”
In recent years the Oak Bay organization opened that “special environment” to artists alongside the local artists.
“We have 10 spots for people outside of Oak Bay. As well we give youth artists a free spot,” she said. “They bring their art and paint on site and it’s a nice aspect of it, because we’re trying to promote the arts for young people as well.”
Artists, both in and outside Oak Bay, can visit oakbayartists.com to find a submission form.
“If they’re from outside there’s a small jurying process, so they just send us some photos of their work,” Christinel said. “We do get a lot of people coming through … on a warm sunny day in August we always have a steady flow. It’s very busy so it’s a great opportunity [for artists].”
The Bowker Creek Brush Up is Sunday, Aug. 13 from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and serves as the opening event for Oak Bay’s Arts and Culture Week 2017.
