The Shuswap District Arts Council has stepped up their game and has been rewarded with an $8,000 grant from the Canada Council for the Arts.
The grant for the internationally renowned Cardiff & Miller exhibition adds the arts council to the list of only two other arts organizations in the area to qualify for Canada council funding alongside Roots and Blues and Caravan Farm Theatre.
“This is a project grant, rather than a three-year operating grant, so it’s one-time, but it means the project was nationally recognized, which is a big deal,” says curator/director Tracey Kutschker, noting the Shuswap District Arts Council’s standards have risen over the years so that it now meets national criteria. “It’s a tremendous compliment to the calibre of our talented and hard-working team to achieve this.”
The exhibition Experiment in F# Minor features two works by Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller, and runs until Sept. 19.
The gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is by donation.
Also being rewarded for their artistic endeavours are Melissa Nasby and Roxy Roth.
Nasby received the 2015 Marie Manson Memorial Arts Award, which is given to a mid-career artist who is launching a project or exhibition.
“Melissa’s unusual and brilliant puppetry and artwork is of a very high standard,” says Marie Manson trustee Lois Higgins. “So we were delighted to provide an award to help further her aspirations.”
Nasby and artist Nikki Webber, recently travelled to New York to exhibit the puppet Nym, with which they won an honourable mention in the Jim Henson character contest.
She creates incredible felted masks and costumes for people, too, all through her SoulFibre Studio.
Roxy Roth is the 2015 recipient of the Blair Borden Memorial Award.
Borden’s award is given to a musician who wishes to expand their experience with music.
“Roxy certainly fulfilled that criteria by not only utilizing the funds to further her own experience, but to offer a rhythm workshop to the community,” says Kutschker. “Roxy hosts music camps for kids each year, and offers family workshops and music therapy in a myriad of instruments through her “In the Groove” studio.”
