On Friday, April 23 at 6 p.m., several youths from Aldergrove Community Secondary School will be unveiling a large-scale, public art piece, along Aldergrove’s busy Fraser Highway and the community is invited to attend this event.

The artwork was created after the youths were asked to think about what community meant to them, and how they thought arts and culture affected communities.

It became necessary to secure the expertise of Santo Mignosa, a master ceramicist, in order for the youth to realize their vision of a clay mural, which is one of only a few of its kind in Canada.

For the adults, spend an Evening with the Artist on Friday taking place at Emelle’s Catering in Vancouver. It’s a free art show and sale event that showcases natural themes like landscapes and wildlife. Art lovers will get to munch on finger food and drinks. There will also be a chance to win two paintings. Any donations made to the event will go to Wildlife Federation.

In Burnaby there’s an Arts Open House on Thursday at St. Francis de Sales School. All areas of the school will display student and professional art from the community. There will also be a ‘make and take’ art station as well as music.

And people will be Embracing the Arts in Surrey on Friday at Coast Meridian Elementary. Learn how to refine techniques in cartooning, Airbrushing and wildlife sketching.

 Each year since 1999 communities throughout British Columbia have celebrated the contribution made by the arts, cultural and heritage sector, enhancing quality of life without our various communities. 

 Among the special activities hich will take place will be the launching of the ever-popular ArtWalk, honouring the impressive talents of district-wide artists and artisans.   Nakusp and area merchants continue to express their enthusiasm and support by providing venues in order to help increase visitor as well as local community awareness of abundant talent which exists in our general area.

The annual celebration of art is hosted in conjunction with beyond BC Arts and Culture Week.

It gives visitors and locals the opportunity to enjoy local and regional art, from paintings to photographs, to beads.

As in past years, the Hope & District Arts Council has organized a week filled with a variety of arts related events. In preparation for Arts and Culture Week, members of the Hope Artists Guild will be assisting children in the art of making posters on April 12 & 14 from 3:30-4:30 pm. This will take place at the Art Machine with the theme being Arts and Culture of course! The finished posters will then be displayed in various locations in Hope. There will be no charge for these classes.

Each year, hundreds of arts councils and schools across B.C. participate in this week-long celebration of the arts, with more than 20,000 artists, young people, educators and community members hosting and participating performances, art walks, exhibitions, workshops, and public art projects.

There are already a few events organized for the North Okanagan during the week.

The Enderby and District Arts Council will launch a two month art contest beginning April 18.

Community members will follow clues in the form of poetry, prose or drawings to discover art objects in Enderby and surrounding towns as well as First Nations areas.

Council members have agreed to put Enderby Arts Council bumper stickers on city vehicles.

“They promote the arts council and we want to pique the public’s interest,” said Mayor Dee Wejr.

“All of council is also putting them on their personal vehicles.” One bumper sticker features a fish while the other is a bee.

“They’ve been very beautifully designed. They’re very classy,” said Elizabeth Lute, with the arts council.

“Our aim is to get the community excited about the arts and artists.”

As part of upcoming B.C. Art and Culture Week festivities, the Enderby organization will hold an art treasure hunt.

Some random acts have been whimsical, like the Santa Claus riding his bike around Tofino. Some have been fun, like Laurie Hannah and her children doing a lovely job decorating the sidewalk by Tofino Co-op. And some have been just plain “huh?” — like Greg Blanchette standing motionless with a briefcase and umbrella for 15 minutes at the Main and Campbell intersection in Tofino (see photo top right).

Fairy wings have been spotted at several locations around town. RAATU Aliens in white moon suits invaded Ron Weeks’ live recording session at the Weigh West Monday night. A colourful flamenco class stomped the gazebo floor Monday afternoon (see photo top left). There’s reportedly some poetry coming up, some public splatter art, some open-air DJing, and many other random acts stealthily appearing around our towns, causing moments of whimsy for those lucky enough to catch them.

Each year the B.C. government provides up to $14 million to support the development of arts and culture in this province, and each year thousands of artists, educators and community members organize or participate in a celebratory event during this special week.

The Vernon Community Arts Centre, run by the Arts Council of the North Okanagan, has already started its activities with the juried exhibition, The Mad Potter’s Tea Party, which can currently be viewed in the centre located beside the Okanagan Science Centre at Polson Park.

BIAC is planning the get together in part to acknowledge the strength and breadth of our arts community. Statistics have proven that we have a large percentage of our population who engage in artistic and cultural endeavours. We’ve been named the 4th most artistic small community in the nation, with estimates of seven to 10 per cent of residents deriving their primary source of income from the arts. If we aren’t one ourselves, every person on Bowen has a family member, friend or neighbour who is an artist, whether they be a painter, illustrator, writer, photographer, graphic designer, actor, singer, filmmaker, potter, or other creative individual.

“We’re trying to encourage everybody in town, every single citizen, even dress your pets,” said Lewis. “We’d love to spend this entire week encouraging everybody to commit one act of art.”Random acts of art could include face painting, cartwheel in the park or even dressing up a pet dog.

The week is meant to demonstrate the contribution arts and culture make in everyday learning and life.