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Lethbridge’s arts community can’t wait for Arts Days, Sept. 30-Oct. 2 — a three-day long annual celebration of Lethbridge’s arts scene taking place all over downtown.
“This is pretty much our big event of the year for the Allied Arts Council. We focus all of our energy,” said Ashley Markus, the Allied Arts Council’s director of communications.
“We have so many artists doing amazing works, so this is a way to get everyone involved.”
Arts Days is part of a bigger provincial event, which is in turn part of a national event celebrating the arts.
Over the three days there will be a cornucopia of live music as well as arts in local businesses and even in City Hall.
Markus estimated they have 50 local businesses matched with local artists for the eighth ArtWalk portion of Arts Days.
“There will be painting, wood carving, open studio and felt making,” said Markus listing a few of the types of art being created or on display at local businesses during Arts Days.
A couple things are new this year. There will be an artisan’s market at The Gate featuring different vendors selling things such as jewelry, clothing and patterns, handmade books as well as photographic cards.
The other big event will be the public unveiling of a new work of art outside of the Southern Alberta Art Gallery at 10 a.m. on Friday. Local artists Denton Frederickson and Catherine Ross have created a sculpture, “Aeolian Aviary,” which will be unveiled Sept. 30 at 10 a.m. in the exterior northeast window of the Southern Alberta Art Gallery.
The Galt Museum is also going to part of Arts Days this year with a display of 3-D sculptures from 22 local and area artists who have created wheel-thrown and hand-built clay pieces, plus carved and turned art from exotic woods as well as mixed media pieces plus an iron bird bath.
The music aspect has been toned down to just the evening of the festival, but there will be a beer garden this year, run by the Rotary Club.
Friday night’s performances begin at 5 p.m. with Jesse and the Dandelions, followed by the Hibiyaki- Japanese Taiko drummers, Metis jigging with Roy Pogorzelski, the Karen Romanchuk band, Matthew Robinson and Rancho Deluxe, who end things at 9 p.m.
Saturday begins at 5 p.m. with Vista Park, followed by the Lethbridge Scottish Country Dance Club, Bandemonium, Andrew Scott, Hippodrome and the New Weather Machine at 9 p.m.
“There will be lots of different things to appeal to seniors, students and families,” Markus said.
She added all of the events are free except for the beer gardens in Galt Gardens for the night-time music.
“I’m looking forward to just the atmosphere and different people,” she said.
Programs are available from the AAC office, the Bowman Arts Centre, the Galt Museum or the Southern Alberta Art Gallery for yours. All 50-plus participating ArtWalk venues will also have programs available beginning on Thursday.
Artist Ariana Richardson is excited to be showing her works “The Hobbyist” at City Hall during Arts Days.
She was involved with Arts Days last year when she displayed her works at the Petit Trianon Gallery. The centrepiece, a bed made of tinsel, was recently on display at the now-closed Tongue N’ Groove. It is now hanging from the ceiling at the Slice.
This year she will be premiering a series of works featuring each provincial crest emblazoned or embroidered on a variety of found objects from tuques to a chair she created out of found items and even a Hank Snow album cover.
“They are all found objects which I’ve added a lot of decoration to. A lot of it is Canadian imagery,” Richardson said.
The theme of her exhibit and the third edition of her ’zine is the “Hobbyist,” a character she created.
“The Hobbyist is basically a way for me to explore my art,” she said.
“It comes out monthly. There are lots of photographs and reviews of trips I’ve taken and concerts. And it comes with DVD of bonus footage,” she said, adding she is looking forward to being part of Arts Days.
“There’s going to be a wide range of artists, so it will be nice to see what everybody else has been doing,” she said.
“I’m excited to be a City Hall. They’ve given me free rein to do what I like there,” she said.
Events such as Arts Days is a great opportunity for local artists, she added.
“It’s another place for artists to get their art out there without having to be in a show or a gallery.”
She will be at City Hall from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1.
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