Sunday July 8, 2023 | SOOKE, BC
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends | ISLAND SOCIAL TRENDS – CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Things are busy behind the scenes as preparations for the 2023 Sooke Fine Arts Show make a dash for the finish line: opening day is Saturday July 29. The show runs for 10 days through the Monday of the BC Day long weekend (August 7).
Of course, local art enthusiasts know that every year the full Sooke Fine Arts Show is preceded by the Purchaser’s Preview night, which this year comes up Friday July 28 (7 pm, ticketed event $45+GST).
Over the past few months and weeks the artworks have been submitted and final pieces chosen by the adjudicators. This year there are __ items in the show. The 2023 Exhibiting Artists have been announced.
Each year’s show imparts its own unique tone and personality based on the artworks submitted, which ones are chosen, and also how they are displayed. Exhibited works include original paintings, sculpture, woodwork, photography, fibre arts, ceramics, and hand-formed jewelry.
The Main Gallery will house about 370 works of original island art from artists living on BC’s coastal islands. The Youth Gallery houses art from emerging young artists in the local region who are in high-school or home-schooled in Sooke School District 62 (Langford, Colwood, Sooke, Highlands, Metchosin, Juan de Fuca).
Once again, at the SEAPARC Leisure Complex arena, which becomes professionally transformed into a world-class art exhibit for the Sooke Fine Arts Show each year.
37th show:
This year will mark the 37th time that Sooke’s SEAPARC arena is skillfully transformed into a high-end art gallery welcoming seasoned art lovers as well as those new and curious about the world of art.
From July 29 to August 7, the gallery will showcase original works of art amidst a backdrop of live music, art demonstrations, talks, and guided tours.
There are hands-on activities for youth and families, events for seniors and a well-stocked gift shop of artists’ smaller works.
A gallery of the art pieces displayed at the live Show will also be available for viewing online.
Show passes available online:
Admission tickets and show passes can now be purchased online. See the Admission Section of the SFAS website. Adults $15, Seniors $10, Youth under age 17 get in free.
Tickets can also be purchased at the door (cash, credit, debit).
Volunteers welcome:
A variety of tasks are still available for volunteers in setup and showtime.
Sponsors:
Another year, another long list of Sooke Fine Arts Show sponsors.
Once again, Island Social Trends is a Platinum level sponsor, as part of our continued commitment to supporting the arts and in particular the freshness of art in the south Vancouver Island region.
Top sponsors in 2023:
- PARTNERS: Government of Canada | Province of British Columbia | District of Sooke | Victoria Foundation
- DIAMOND – $5000+: Butler Concrete & Aggregate Ltd.| Bell Media: CFAX 1070 | Bell Media: CTV News Vancouver Island | Keycorp Consulting Ltd. | Seacliff Properties | SEAPARC Leisure Centre | Tom Lee Music | Times Colonist | Used.ca
- PLATINUM – $2500+: Air North, Yukon’s Airline |Island Social Trends | Marsden Group | West Coast Grill
===== ABOUT ISLAND SOCIAL TRENDS:
Island Social Trends is a professional news portal at islandsocialtrends.ca . Fully online since mid-2020, Island Social Trends emerged from the extensive groundwork of previous print publications in the west shore: MapleLine Magazine (2008-2010), Sooke Voice News (2011-2013), and West Shore Voice News (2014-2020).
Since 2008, journalist and editor Mary P Brooke has taken a socioeconomic lens to news analysis about the west shore and south Vancouver Island region, including BC provincial news, and national news impacts. That falls within the publication’s mission of providing thought-leadership in the region.
Island Social Trends has been a sponsor of the Sooke Fine Arts Show each year since 2017, at the Platinum Level in 2022 and 2023.
In 2023 Ms Brooke has been nominated for the Jack Webster Foundation’s Shelley Fralic Award to recognize a woman whose professional journalism contributes to her community. Among many other contributions, the print edition of Mary’s publications over the years has been available free at various coffee shops, rec centres and libraries in the south Vancouver Island region.
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