The land is in bloom and so is the art! Castlegar Arts Council (CAC) is pleased to be partnering with local businesses, sponsors and artists to present the annual Castlegar Artwalk – a fresh collaborative creative feast for eyes and soul!
CAC recently reached out to former Arts Council President Leni Normington for historical Castlegar Artwalk facts. We appreciated finding out what her experience with CAC for 22 years meant to her.
Artwalk began in the mid-70s. It’s one of the oldest events produced by Castlegar Arts Council, a non-profit registered society. When I got involved in the mid-1990s I wanted to make Artwalk a bigger event, market it using a new design for the brochure, and do more outreach to the business community to show them how an Artwalk could benefit business and culture in Castlegar. So, the design of the brochure changed to reflect a new logo, Sandra Donahue did the cover art, and over 27 businesses signed up to exhibit local artists – voila! Success!
The City of Castlegar generously provided street banners, helped with printing, and the opening venue moved from a small space with limited room into the Recreation Complex with over 100 people coming to enjoy speakers, appies, and grand openings every year.
As president of the Arts Council for over 22 years I always reminded folks on opening night that our cultural community was like the sequoias of the Sierra Nevada in Central California – unique. There's only a 420-kilometre strip of these trees in California and it's less than 24-kilometers wide.
Remarkably, these groves have very shallow roots less than a meter deep. So how do they survive? They survive because they grow in groves, roots interlocked below the surface, giving them a collective stability that endures. And so it is with us.
What became clear to producing Artwalk year after year was that persistence, adaptability, and most of all developing a sense of community spring from our connections with each other. We're hooked at the roots and it shows in the current programming a new Arts Council has fostered: film nights, a refreshed Artwalk, drink and draw nights, and a host of other cultural events are expanding our cultural qualities in Castlegar.
Artwalk, still going strong after 50 years, illustrates the strength and resilience that resides in us all.
CAC is grateful to participating venues, artists and sponsors that unite to create this event. Opening night will be June 6 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Nordic Studio.
Everyone is welcome to attend this opportunity to meet artists and see a sample of their work, enjoy refreshments and pick up a copy of the Artwalk tour map brochure.
