A pair of Oak Bay artists will Paint in the Park for the Community Arts Council of Greater Victoria plein air event and arts expo in Saanich. Caroline Hunter and Claire Christinel are well known for their distinctive styles of painting; Hunter for her limited palette landscapes and Christinel for her depiction of still life subjects according to Rory Kirby.
Kirby, an active member of the Oak Bay Community Artists Society, watercolourist and creator of the society’s web page looks forward to promoting the society and inviting new memberships at the CACGV Fall for the Arts Expo 2014, a day devoted to introducing locals to the art resources and artists within their community – and themselves.
“I’ll be representing the Oak Bay Community Artists Society,” he said. “We’re trying to breathe a bit of life into the society by making it visible and inviting people who might be interested in one form or another of artistry to join.”
Kirby will explain the popularity of the Oak Bay Bowker Creek annual event, involvement in Recreation Oak Bay’s twice yearly studio tours, as well as other activities, such as Resident Artist programs and the plein air painting each Summer Sunday on the lawn at the Fairmont Empress Hotel. Because of their involvement in the Paint in the Park, Rory will offer Hunter and Christinel’s cards for sale as mementos.
The Belfry Theatre, Langham Court Theatre, Artbox and Embroiderers’ Guild of Victoria are among other participating organizations.
“One of the big motivations for us in putting on this event, and a lot of our other programming, is to celebrate the accomplishments of people who are in the arts and to engage others,” said Bob Williams, president of the CACGV, “to give people a bigger understanding of the arts and appreciate what they’re seeing and hearing and perhaps make them want to pick up a paintbrush or pencil.”
The expo showcases talent, suppliers and retailers and those in the community who are offering courses or workshops in all disciplines, whether visual, literary or performing arts-focused.
Ideally, Williams said, someone could come to the show and go home with everything they need: information on where to get art supplies, mentoring opportunities and ultimately, encouragement.
“Our sense has been that there’s some mystique that artists live on a cloud and we’re mere mortals,” he said. “But in fact, they’re just people who are expressing their creativity and we’re keen to work with people, no matter what stage they’re at in their arts career – whether they’re picking up a paintbrush for the first time, or they’re professional.”
Interested artists are encouraged to register at 250-475-7123.
Participate in demos, watch presentations and meet artists at work from noon until 5 p.m. on Sept. 13 at The Arts Centre a Cedar Hill, located within the Cedar Hill Recreation Centre, 3220 Cedar Hill Rd.
Learn more about the Oak Bay Community Artists Society at oakbayartists.com online.