By Carlie Connolly/News staff
Rodger Garbutt will be the Artist in Residence for the month of September, showcasing his watercolour artwork at the Pier Hotel.
Beginning September 2, Wednesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Garbutt will have his work on display for purchase and will offer watercolour demonstrations in the foyer of the hotel.
Having taught art for many years in England, Australia and here as an art teacher at Claremont Secondary School for 27 years, Garbutt still gets the opportunity to travel around and showcase his work.
“I’ve been to a few different galleries up and down the island and I teach workshops all the way from the Monterey Recreation Centre in Oak Bay up to Lake Cowichan and Duncan and that sort of area,” he said.
His main watercolour pieces are figurative and landscape, with some of the Pier Hotel or local scenes around the Sidney area.
“You tend to be trying to look to the tourists that are coming in and a lot of the seniors that come in, in September once the high season is over,” he said.
He said that prices range depending on the painting, but some of the work he does, he turns into cards, which go as low as $4.50 a piece.
Garbutt also attended Tulista Park in the spring to display his work there, and he said he had a great response from the community. He added it’s encouraging for local artists to attend such venues.
He encourages the community to visit his site at rodgergarbutt.weebly.com.