CHESTERMERE – The Chestermere Art and Culture Days have come and gone for another year and if you missed taking part in any of the numerous events and displays offered this past weekend, you missed something very spectacular. The weather was fantastic and there were so many neat things to see and do, it was almost overwhelming. The good thing, the event will be back next year and as it looks now, the trendy show will be even bigger and better than before. This was only the second year and its popularity is catching on.
The Beatnik Cafe kicked off the event on Thursday, September 27th at the Chestermere Public Library. Entertainment was provided by the talented Chestermere High School Jazz Band, a caricature artist, some poetry readings and of course there was also art on display.
On the Friday you had the opportunity to shake your booty at the Learn to Move Dance Workshop at the Chestermere Recreation Centre. Here you could learn the moves in Hip Hop, Line Dancing, Zumba or Latin Styles.
The entertainment kept on rolling on Saturday and Sunday as Boston Pizza and West Creek Pub created a stage for some local talent to perform while guests enjoyed their meals.
Chestermere Library presented a talk and demonstration on the history of animation, present and future and according to Jennifer Llewellyn, a local animation and illustrator artist, “This is a field that should be shown to the junior and senior high school kids”. Llewellyn added “There are lots of students with artistic talent that just need to be shown the opportunities in the field, and there are many”.
For those of you who ever wanted to learn how to paint, draw or craft glass, there were numerous Art Workshops to partake.
And then we get to what I thought was the heart of the Art Walk where some artists opened their homes and garages for viewing their precious pieces of work. Other local artists, who are members of the Whitecappers, chose to show their treasures in the Whitecappers 50+ Centre beside the Chestermere Recreation Centre. As many as 13 artists set up shop in the hall to display their work ranging from painting to woodworking to jewelry. Maxine McKellar showed me some her artwork that she had been working on since the spring. She was making things with her granddaughter and decided to take up the hobby. She thought there were several other Whitecapper artists and thought the hall would be a great place to display their collections. There were a total of 11 studios scattered throughout the town which you could easily attend all of the studios within the 2 days designated for the show. It was particularly pleasant talking to the artist who are very passionate about their creations. Georgina Kasur, who I must admit was very patient with me and my ignorance of some her artwork, explained to me about her style and philosophy of why she creates the various pieces. Kasur also hosted a workshop titled “An Afternoon in the Mountains”. The Chestermere Art and Culture Days held every September is like a festival; there are enough happenings around the town to please anyone’s cultural taste buds. This is an event you won’t want to miss next year. It’s a beaut.
