Paint us relieved.
The Sidney Fine Art Show will return to the Mary Winspear Centre this fall, following about a week of anxiety that one of the largest events of its kind in the Island was about to be erased.
Recent changes in the leadership at the Community Arts Council of the Saanich Peninsula (CACSP), caused a wave of uncertainty about its members — not the least of which was its impact on the committee looking after preparations for this fall’s Art Show.
There were hints that the retirement of former CACSP President and Art Show committee chair Richard Julien — as well as proposed involvement from the Mary Winspear Centre itself — may have contributed to some of the confusion that led the committee to state they could not continue. No one has said exactly what the issues were, but in the last week, those excuses have been washed away as the Art Show is back on the canvas.
Representatives of the Town of Sidney, CACSP and the Mary Winspear Centre met recently and have ironed out the problems and announced that the Sidney Fine Art Show will go ahead in October, as planned.
That’s great news — and certainly a huge sigh of relief for area artists, patrons and local businesses.
It’s also good news for the community that the Art Show is back on. It’s one of those local events, put on by hard-working local people, that adds the cultural atmosphere on the Saanich Peninsula. The juried art event draws in all sorts of people and visitors who can see some of the most interesting creations on offer by artists from across the region.
We are, today, praising the work done by all parties to ensure the Art Show does not fall by the wayside. With that threat over, now the community should place the event on their calendars and help support the Sidney Fine Art Show.