Always some new wrinkles at ArtWalk
Paintings made from heated beeswax will be among the items up for sale during this weekend's ArtWalk in Lake Country.
Known as encaustic art, the pieces will bring a new dimension to the long-running art show, organizer Sharon McCoubrey says.
"The artists add color to heated beeswax and then they can then do a lot of creative things with it, in terms of texture and 3-D imagery," McCoubrey said Thursday.
Other new wrinkles at this year's 24th annual ArtWalk include the making of a large Canadian flag, composed of people’s faces, to celebrate the country’s 150th anniversary. There are also six scheduled talks on topics such as the appropriation of Indigenous art forms.
Back again is the crowd-pleasing competition between artists to create an original painting in one hour, to see which piece fetches the highest price at a subsequent auction.
About 25 per cent of artists whose work will be shown at ArtWalk are first-time participants, a somewhat higher number than usual, McCoubrey says. That helps ensure that even people who've been to many ArtWalks in the past can discover the works of new artists.
ArtWalk is the largest annual art show in B.C., featuring work in a variety of mediums by 300 Okanagan based artists. All the pieces, which are selected for exhibition by a panel of judges beforehand to ensure top quality, are for sale.
More than $100,000 worth of art is usually sold during the two-day event. Admission is $2, same as it has always been.
About 7,000 people typically attend ArtWalk, which is held Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at the town's community complex at 10241 Bottom Wood Lake Rd.