All are welcome to join the Chilliwack Community Arts Council in Central Community Park on June 11 for Art Under the Umbrella.
This full-day arts and culture event serves to recognize and celebrate artistic diversity while encouraging public interaction in a festive atmosphere.
Setting the tone for this vibrant celebration, live musicians and performers will be entertaining visitors with their diverse styles. Violinist Symarah Lush will bring her fiddling flair, Damian Brennan will be sharing his guitar and vocal talents, and Neezar’s Troupe will be performing interactive and colourful street-style splendour.
As visitors meander through the park, they will discover art installations expressing unique artistic viewpoints from local artists.
Multi-media sculptor Sylvie Roussel-Janssens will debut ‘Hot and Bothered,’ a series of woven banners made of recycled snow fence material, inspired by the theme of global warming and interdependence of species.
For her previous art projects targeting climate change, Roussel-Janssens is the 2016 recipient of the Canadian Wildlife Federation’s Robert Bateman Award. She was nominated by Chilliwack’s Katherine Browne, which motivated her to take on the Hot and Bothered banner series.
Emerging artist Alisha Deddens will unveil ‘Waste Not, Want Not,’ a commentary on the extravagant wastefulness of modern consumer culture.
Dorothy Scudamore will fascinate visitors with ‘More Alike Than You Think,’ featuring whimsical mixed media creatures waiting to be discovered in foliage throughout the park.
To round out the Art Under the Umbrella experience, artisan vendors will have handcrafted creations for sale. Jewellery lovers will be dazzled by Bliss Blossom Jewelry, Mignon and Waugh, and Glitz and Glamour Jewelry and Art. Those looking to accessorize will find endless choices with Willow Cottage, Loving the Bling, and Section 35.
Guests who embrace all artistic mediums will fall in love with works from Jeanette Heathman, Devon Road Pottery, Albery Studio, the Central Fraser Valley Graphic Guild, Julie Epp, Tessa Dumanski, Katerina Tiessen, and School District 33 Education Centre students.
Further animating the park landscape, select market artists will be showcasing their talents with live art demonstrations. Watch Michael Hamilton-Clark form wooden masterpieces on the lathe, Joy Roberts sketch imaginative caricatures, and Julie Epp and Tessa Dumanski as they collaborate on a large-scale drawing.
Beyond the park festivities, visitors are encouraged to venture out into the colourful streets of downtown Chilliwack to experience Paint the Town, a window and mural painting contest organized by Urban Sprout Café and downtown community partners. Artists of all ages will be painting their hearts out at select downtown sites in honour of the event, starting at 9:30 a.m.
Celebrate Art Under the Umbrella on June 11 at Central Community Park (45943 Victoria Ave) from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Learn more about the event at chilliwackartscouncil.com, at 604-769-2787 or by visiting the Chilliwack Community Arts Council – Art Room (20-5725 Vedder Road).
