Gabriola Island Lifestyle Blog
Archive for the ‘The Arts’ Category
Saturday, October 16th, 2010
We were so lucky today to have the chance to take the girls to a pottery class at Feedlot Studios here on Gabriola. We were greeted by an extremely fun and warm Mariko and her husband Bryan in their large, bright studio space located at 800 Valli Place. The girls started by getting in the Halloween mood with some ghoulish drawings to get the creative juices flowing. Once they had done a drawing Mariko showed us how to create a Halloween landscape complete with owls, pumpkins, snakes, crows, tombstones, cats and “Do Not Enter” signs as well as so much more. Once the creepy landscapes were formed the kids were able to paint them with a non-toxic ceramic paint in fun colours such as orange, green, black, red and white as well as a myriad of other “non-Halloween” colours. Once they were finished the kids were told that there pieces would be put in the kiln and would be ready for a later date. The finishing touch for the kids was a lovely little treat bag with Halloween candy and stickers. What an incredible way to spend a Saturday morning in October! To keep up to date on what this talented couple are doing subscribe to their blog http://feedlotstudios.blogspot.com/ and check out their website at http://feedlotstudios.ca
Photo courtesy of Bryan and Mariko
Posted in Crafts, family life, Gabriola Island, Gabriola Living, Gulf Island Lifestyle, Holidays and Special Events, Kids, People, The Arts, West Coast Living | No Comments »
Sunday, October 10th, 2010
It is day two of the 14th Annual Thanksgiving Studio Tour and the island is hopping. This event has been advertised far and wide and the attendance by islanders and vistors alike is phenominal! They are browsing and buying original creations of jewelry, clothing, paintings, photograpy, sculpture, leather bags, woodwork, pottery, glass work and more. Gabriola should be very proud of its artist community, such diversity and quality of art work is unsurpassed. Be sure to get out and see the artists in 41 locations, Studio 9 still has a few things left and would love to have you drop by. Robyn’s line ‘For Give and For Get’ offers some very special children’s and women’s clothing and accessories in exciting and colorful fabrics - and Carly’s luminous jewelry showcasing semi-precious stones is a delight!
Posted in Buy Local, Crafts, Gabriola Living, Holidays and Special Events, The Arts | No Comments »
Sunday, August 22nd, 2010
This largest of summer art festivals on Gabriola promises to be a favorite with locals and visitors alike. Two days of a variety of theatre performances, show and sell Street Art, music, and dancing, with the Gabriola Lions Club providing a pancake breakfast on Saturday morning. There is something here for everyone. The main theater tent holds 220 and there were still a few tickets available on Saturday for some of the performances.
Posted in Holidays and Special Events, Kids, Music, The Arts | No Comments »
Wednesday, April 21st, 2010
I am a board member at People for a Healthy Community (PHC) and we have entered an artistic garbage can, designed by Gabriola’s very own Jeff Molloy, in the Art Councils “Shake your Can” event. Done with the encaustic method and utilizing Jeff’s common crow theme this is a fabulous one of a kind piece of art. Drop by Artworks for the Trashformation opening on April 22 at 7 pm to see our can and if you like it – please toss in your change (or large unmarked bills) as a donation to PHC. If you really like it, come to the Mother’s Day brunch and auction at the Surf Lodge on May 9 and buy the can, with proceeds from the can and auction of said can going to PHC! It will be a fantastic fundraiser for many groups on Gabriola and imagine how great they will look in your yard:)
posted by Carly McMahon
Posted in Causes, fundraising, Gabriola Island, Gabriola Living, Gulf Island Lifestyle, Holidays and Special Events, People, The Arts, volunteering, West Coast Living | No Comments »
Sunday, February 28th, 2010
I visited Sheila Norgate’s Heartspeak show on February 13th and while I fell in love with a few of her paintings there I also came across an album featuring pieces she had created on commission, most of them portraying the commissioner’s four legged friend.
I decided our beloved Boxer, Optimus Prime, would make a perfect model so I picked out a photo for Sheila to use, told her a bit about his personality and within a couple days I brought home this fabulous piece of artwork!
Visit Sheila’s website at sheilanorgate.com
Posted in Shopping on Gabriola, The Arts | No Comments »
Sunday, November 8th, 2009
Plan to come to the 6th Annual Poetry Gabriola Festival, a wild West Coast celebration of literary performance. For four days, November 12-15, the Surf Lodge on Gabriola Island will be filled to the rafters with poets, musicians, storytellers, sound artists, and other special guests. Enjoy an off beat weekend of unconventional performance, remarkable readings, Round Table talks, and four captivating workshops sponsored by The Poetry Gabriola Society. This group has provided a forum for great poetry and extraordinary performance since the year 2000. Tickets should be bought in advance; on line at poetrygabriola.com, in person at Artworks, or by phone 250-247-7604.
Posted in Gabriola Living, Holidays and Special Events, The Arts | No Comments »
Thursday, November 5th, 2009
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A timber frame raising took place at the Gabriola Commons, the result of a huge volunteer effort. The timber frame structure was donated by the Island School of Building Arts and will house farming equipment at first. The plan is to finish the building using a number of green building techniques such as strawbale, cordwood and rammed earth and alternative power. This will be an interesting project to observe, complemented by a recently built cob wall.
Posted in Gabriola Living, greener living, Healthy Living, The Arts, volunteering | No Comments »
Monday, October 19th, 2009
Part of the Gabriola Thanksgiving Festival was this weekend of Art Start Workshops. Sponsored by Gabriola Arts Council and British Columbia Arts Council, this two day extravaganza of Art instruction was free for the under 18 crowd and $10 for adults. The workshops averaged 2 to 3 hours and covered such artistic pursuits as drawing, painting, dance, singing, mosaics, knitting, hooking and spinning, drumming, working with clay, and making suncatchers and wings. Carly attended “Winging it!” and created a beautiful pair of wearable faery wings.
Posted in Gabriola Living, Holidays and Special Events, The Arts | No Comments »
Sunday, October 11th, 2009
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It is day two of the three day Gabriola Studio Tour 2009, this free self guided yearly event is a favorite of islanders and visitors alike. 40 artist studios are open from 10-4 over the Thanksgiving weekend with art from the whimsical to the useful including paintings, glasswork, woodwork, leatherwork, metalwork, stonework, jewelry, quilting, books, pottery, photography, textiles – meet the artists and experience a grand display of their art in quaint little artist gallery settings throughout the island. This is a well planned event with a fabulous tour brochure map available everywhere and on line. We find 1/2 hour per gallery is a good expectation. On our first day we each bought a purse from Indian Summer and some little gifts. With day two and three ahead of us we are sure to find more treasures to make our own.
Posted in Buy Local, Gabriola Living, greener living, Holidays and Special Events, Shopping on Gabriola, The Arts | No Comments »
Monday, August 24th, 2009
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Entertainment abounds both on and off Island this weekend. On Gabriola we had the Theater Festival, a three day extravaganza with eight superb plays, Street Art Artists Fair, Lions Pancake Breakfast, an Improv Workshop and dancers and musicians. At the same time in Nanaimo the Vancouver Island Exhibition took place at Beban Park. On Sunday we decided on a trip to the exhibition and enjoyed seeing all the animals and exhibits. There was a horse show, vintage cars and tractors, dog trials, home arts, a food fair and of course a midway – lots of fun!
Posted in Daytripping on Vancouver Island, Gulf Island Lifestyle, Holidays and Special Events, The Arts | No Comments »
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We were so lucky today to have the chance to take the girls to a pottery class at Feedlot Studios here on Gabriola. We were greeted by an extremely fun and warm Mariko and her husband Bryan in their large, bright studio space located at 800 Valli Place. The girls started by getting in the Halloween mood with some ghoulish drawings to get the creative juices flowing. Once they had done a drawing Mariko showed us how to create a Halloween landscape complete with owls, pumpkins, snakes, crows, tombstones, cats and “Do Not Enter” signs as well as so much more. Once the creepy landscapes were formed the kids were able to paint them with a non-toxic ceramic paint in fun colours such as orange, green, black, red and white as well as a myriad of other “non-Halloween” colours. Once they were finished the kids were told that there pieces would be put in the kiln and would be ready for a later date. The finishing touch for the kids was a lovely little treat bag with Halloween candy and stickers. What an incredible way to spend a Saturday morning in October! To keep up to date on what this talented couple are doing subscribe to their blog http://feedlotstudios.blogspot.com/ and check out their website at http://feedlotstudios.ca
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Robyn & Carly McMahon and unlicensed assistant Lesley McMahon, your Gabriola Island Real Estate Sales Team