Madrona Gallery celebrates the holidays with its 8th annual Deck the Walls group exhibition, showcasing the diversity of work from the Madrona stable of artists. This show includes new works by Meghan Hildebrand, Sean Yelland, Morgana Wallace, Claude Langevin, Halin de Repentigny, Rick Bond and others, alongside Important Inuit and Historic Canadian works. Deck the Walls VIII runs to Dec. 31 at 606 View St.
The Robert Bateman Centre hosts its oneTree 2017 exhibit through to Jan. 31. The centre’s largest exhibit of the year features 53 local artists all making art from a single salvaged walnut tree that came down from St. Charles St. in Rockland.
Following the success of oneTree 2015, the Robert Bateman Centre and Live Edge Design partnered again, offering a chance for the public to experience the work of locals galvanized by the story of a gnarly old tree. This collaborative project demonstrates the large potential economic impact from artisanal use of small amounts of salvaged wood, merging art with skilled craftsmanship and an appreciation for the natural world. These Canadian artists have created over $100,000 in value-added art, with diverse pieces ranging from nine musical instruments, 23 pieces of furniture, two doors, 11 sculptures, six bowls, five lights, and even a gnome home.
For over a century, this black walnut bore witness to the everyday life of the Rockland neighbourhood. It spread great gnarly limbs over St Charles Manor, a heritage home that became an elderly care facility. The tree started growing roots into the soil as the world went to war, not once, but twice. The walnut’s leafy canopy became part of the character of the house and local neighbourhood. Slowly, a crack began to form and spread inside the tree. In 2016, the decision was made to take down the tree for safety reasons, and now it is being transformed by 53 artists into one-of-a-kind pieces of art.
The celebration of the oneTree and its history will inspire people to explore the importance of appreciating, protecting and maximizing the use of our local trees. In addition, this exhibit will also showcase the breadth and talent of Canadian artists and their entrepreneurial spirit.
Pieces will be on display at the oneTree 2017 exhibit at the Robert Bateman Centre to Jan. 31, 2018. Each piece will be available for purchase with proceeds benefiting the Bateman Foundation, a not-for-profit organization focused on art and nature education. For more information on the exhibit visit theonetreeproject.ca.
This Ain’t No Xmas Show features 10 artists of the Gage Gallery Arts Collective. Each artist is confined to the use of two colours and nine square feet of wall space to create inspirational paintings, collage and photography from a diverse range of subjects including the Rosetta Stone, Pierre Trudeau, the Italian Palio di Siena horse race, the psychological condition of Melancholia, the experience of free falling, imaginary spaces and transitions, as well as Venetian gondolas and Salt Spring dragon flies.
The 19 members of the non-profit society Gage Gallery Arts Collective are dedicated to creating a contemporary, professional venue to promote art and culture in the community. They work together to have a stimulating and educational interaction with the public through art, music, poetry, mentorship, workshops and presentations.
For the December exhibition, 10 artists created their contribution to the show using simple criteria of colour and size format. The colour palette is any combination of orange, blue, black and white. Artists in This Ain’t No Xmas Show include Agnes Ananichuk, Shelby Assenheimer, Kirsten Brand, Margo Cooper, Linda Darby, Gerald Fleming, Barry Herring, Sherry Tompalski, Haren Vakil, Liz Wells. This Ain’t No Xmas Show opens Thursday, Dec. 14 from 5 to 7 p.m. and runs Dec. 12 to 23 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday throught Saturday.
Next up at Gage is Off the Wall from Jan. 3 to 13, 2018.
The West End Gallery presents the return of its popular Calendar Show for the holiday season. New works by our artists will be released on a 12-month desk calendar for 2018. The perfect stocking stuffer for the contemporary art lover in your life! View a variety of work by gallery artists including: Steven Armstrong, Alain Bédard, Dana Irving, Grant Leier, Naomi Cairns, Robert Savignac, Mary Ann Laing, Aleksandra, Gabryel Harrison, Patricia Johnston, Greta Guzek, Joanne Gauthier, Sabina, Irene Klar, Peter Shostak, Rod Charlesworth, Claudette Castonguay, Elka Nowicka, Deborah Tilby, Darlene Kulig, Peter Wyse, Glenn Payan, Robert Genn and more.
The Calendar Show runs at West End Gallery, 1203 Broad St. to Dec. 30.
One of the most popular shows, Small Works, returns to Eclectic Gallery.
Always well received by clients and visitors, with an array of over 100 pieces of original artwork, from a broad spectrum of artists, all priced under $500 just in time for the holiday season. Small Works runs to Jan. 8, Monday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at 2170 Oak Bay Ave.
The Avenue Gallery showcases wearable art created by the finest boutique jewellers in Canada with All That Glitters.
A percentage from the sale of each gem sold will be donated to Victoria Hospice. Even more magical, a group of local philanthropists have offered to match all donations in December, up to $100,000. All That Glitters runs to Dec. 24. at 2184, Oak Bay Ave.
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