Columbia Basin Culture Tour fast approaching - and free!
By Contributor
Taking place Aug. 8 and 9, from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., the Columbia Basin Culture Tour allows you to explore artists’ studios, museums, art galleries and heritage sites during this free, self-guided event. Travel to studios and archives that aren’t normally open, see demonstrations, new exhibitions and collections or meet people behind the scenes. To participate in the tour, simply grab a map, your Culture Tour Directory and go!
Castlegar features new venues and returning favourites. Wilma Brooks Hughes joins the tour this year, featuring artisan soaps, lino prints and one of a kind jewellery made with polymer clay, wire and metal. Visit Theresa LeRose at Makes Me Smile studio to see hand built and wheel thrown pottery at different stages of creation as well as Theresa working at her wheel. Kootenay Gallery features “Peacing: Sacred Circle of Life” an installation by Maggie Shirley who transformed strips of shredded paper into circular plates, tall cones and shapes. The shapes became figures that when collected together mimic a group of ancestors or a grove of birch trees. The gallery also houses a beautiful gift shop with the work of many regional artists. Overlooking the Columbia River, the grounds include a xeriscape and butterfly garden complete with a working sundial and outdoor sculptures.
The Doukhobor Discovery Centre is a reconstruction of a typical Doukhobor Village, showing all the major buildings, tools, handicrafts and implements used in day to day life as it evolved in the Kootenay region of British Columbia as lived in 1908 – 1939. The Centre also houses the Selkirk Spinners and Weavers Guild, where you can view demonstrations in their lovely shop full of handcrafted textile work, located in a new, larger space.
In Downtown Castlegar, Sculpturewalk is an outdoor exhibit of new and original sculptures, featuring artists from across North America. Viewers can vote for their favourite via ballot: The People’s Choice is purchased by the City of Castlegar for the permanent collection. Close by at Catherine’s Glass Studio you will find stained glass and fused glass creations made by Catherine White. Playing with both traditional and modern styles, Catherine creates both functional and non-functional artworks which are a collage of colour and texture.
On to Robson, to visit Mirja Vahala in her beautiful 1200 sq. foot studio to view her dramatic and colourful landscape paintings of the surrounding area. Sandra Donohue’s studio features her luminous paintings. Watercolours are Sandra’s favourite medium because of its transparency and ability to mingle colours, but she also works in acrylic, pastel, and oil. She generally paints representative work, but lately has been expanding her horizon with less realistic paintings, using different surfaces, and working in cold temperatures.
In Beasley this year visit Lisa Martin at her pottery studio. Lisa will have a large display of her wheel thrown, textured and altered pottery on exhibit and for sale, as well as smoke fired wall art and sculptural vessels on display.
Tour brochures are available at tourist information centres and participating venues. Visit the website at www.cbculturetour.com to view full artist/venue profiles for further details on each location’s activities or register to receive a tour brochure in the mail. For further information, call the CKCA at 1-250-505-5505 or toll free at 1-877-505-7355. The Columbia Basin Culture Tour is generously supported by Columbia Basin Trust funding.
