Island Mountain Arts - Events - Events

2008 Fundraiser Raffle Tickets Go On Sale (2008-07-12 to 2008-10-31)

2008 Island Mountain Arts Fundraising Raffle Tickets on Sale July 1st
Tickets Drawn October 31st!!

This year IMA is selling 1000 raffle tickets for the price of $20 in order to raise funds for The Island Mountain Arts Public Gallery, IMA endowment fund, IMA children’s programming and the ArtsWells Festival.

Prizes include an Original Monoprint by David Alexander entitled "Brew", value $2800, and an Original Serigraph Print by Tony Onley entitled Golden Ear’s Peak, value $1000.

"Brew" by David Alexander

On Saturday August 2nd Mark Forsythe, host of CBC's B.C Almanac will join the ArtsWells Festival to open the outdoor stage at noon and introduce his new book, The Trail of 1858: British Columbia's Gold Rush Past. Signed by Mark and co-author Greg Dickson, this book will be also be added to the fundraising raffle. Other prizes include a painting by Shirley Ann Royer, gold work by Mark Castagnoli, family packages to Barkerville Historic Town and many more...

To purchase tickets phone the IMA Gallery at 1-800-442-2787 or contact info@imarts.com

Slide Presentation and Reading - Daniel Wood (2008-07-12 at 7:00 PM to 2008-07-21 at 9:00 PM)

The Island Mountain Arts Public Gallery in Wells, BC is pleased to announce that photo-journalist Daniel Wood will be doing a slide presentation and reading on Monday, July 21st.

Vancouver’s Daniel Wood is one of Canada’s best-known magazine writers, and winner of 31 regional or national writing awards. He’s also the author of 14 books. His stories often deal with conflicts around social justice, environmental abuse, and the outsider’s role in a doctrinaire world. He has taught writing at Simon Fraser University for 20 years, and is one of the founders both the Western Magazine Awards and the Federation of B.C. Writers. In recognition of his work, the Western Magazine Awards gave him its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000, the only writer so honoured.

He has also spent 40 years travelling to the world’s most remote places. Truly, he is one of the most travelled people in BC. This show will feature photos and stories from the planet’s remaining frontiers, including Antarctica, Borneo, Mongolia, Ellesmere Island, the Egyptian Sahara, the jungles of southern Nepal, South Africa’s Kalahari Desert, Mayan Guatemala, the tiny mid-Pacific island of Tavewa, and more.

There is a $10 admission fee. (Fundraiser for IMA)

Exhibition Opening-Cariboo Cowboy, Sonia Cornwall (2008-07-18 at 7:00 PM to 2008-08-11 at 9:00 PM)

The Island Mountain Arts Public Gallery in Wells, BC is pleased to announce the Opening of Cariboo region artist, Sonia Cornwall’s Exhibition of paintings, Cariboo Cowboy on Friday, July 18, 2008 at 7:00pm at the IMA Gallery.

“Sonia Cornwall paintings embrace more than just it’s natural beauty, but continue to portray the cattle ranching way of life - her life, that helped to shape and define the character of this vast interior region” writes William Matthews. Now she brings you Cariboo Cowboy, again, inspired by her own experience.

All are welcome to attend the Opening and Curator Talk at 7pm on Friday, July 18th.

Artist Talk - 6pm, Peter von Tiesenhausen (2008-07-20 at 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM)

note new time of 6pm...so you can also take in the Fred Wells Show at the Sunset Theatre at 8pm.

The Island Mountain Arts Public Gallery in Wells, BC is pleased to announce that artist Peter Von Tiesenhausen will be doing a talk on Sunday, July 20th.

Alberta artist Peter von Tiesenhausen has a fierce connection to the land. That connection is present in all of his work, whether it’s in a painting, mixed media, an installation, or a sculpture made of willow branches, granite, bronze, or wood. Born in British Columbia, Peter moved with his family to Demmitt, Alberta, outside of Grande Prairie, when he was a young child and still maintains a strong attachment to the family homestead. Much of Peter’s art deals with transformation and transience. His deep involvement with the land is evident. Working with willow branches, ice and wood, his installations are found high up in trees, in the middle of the bush, or in open fields. Peter’s art production is non-traditional; he burns, carves and otherwise transforms environments into art spaces. Peter’s innovative works have been exhibited worldwide, to much acclaim, and can be found in many important public collections.

Admission is by donation. (free for students in his course)

Concert - Celso Machado and Don Alder (2008-07-31 at 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM)

The Island Mountain Arts Public Gallery is pleased to announce the upcoming concert of Celso Machado and Don Alder on Thursday, July 31st at the Sunset Theatre.

Virtuoso Brazilian guitarist, percussionist, and multi-instrumentalist Celso Machado transports his audiences through the richness and diversity of Brazilian music and beyond. Just nominated for a 2008 Juno Award, Celso has performed and taught master classes throughout Europe, Canada, the United States and Brazil for over thirty years.

Williams Lake native Don Alder is the 2007 International Fingerstyle Champion (Winfield, KS). With his unique style of playing, he incorporates fingerpicking with simultaneous percussion on the soundboard to create a wall of sound. He is often referred to as sounding like a four piece band. Don’s music is his own unique weave of deeply textured melody and story. As well as being a world-class fingerstyle guitarist, Don also works with the Rick Hansen Man in Motion Foundation and in 1985 put his musical career on hold to join Hansen on his world tour.

Tickets can be purchased for $25 ($20 for IMA members and ArtsWells Festival Pass holders). (For students in their courses the concert ticket are included in your tuition.)

ARTSWELLS FESTIVAL (2008-08-01 at 12:00 AM to 2008-08-04 at 12:00 AM)

The Island Mountain Arts Public Gallery in Wells, BC is pleased to announce the ARTSWELLS FESTIVAL of all things art that will be taking place August 1st to August 4th.

Catch the hit summer event, the ArtsWells Festival August 1-4, 2008. Brimming with the dynamic talent of over 100 artists and performers, ArtsWells has developed the reputation of BC’s largest and best new indie arts festival on the block. Festival goers, volunteers, and artists alike return each year for the great hospitality, the historical gold-rush draw and natural beauty of Wells, as well as the ability to see and mingle with a wide array of amazing talent from across the country.

ArtsWells features over 50 musical acts, the 9th International One Minute Play Festival, free workshops ranging from songwriting, bellydancing, yoga, and djembe drumming, dance performances, a visual ArtWalk around the town of Wells, a puppet show, kids activities, artisans selling their wares, and discounts to local attractions like Barkerville Historic Town - where you can catch more ArtsWells musical acts just 8 km down the road. Performers travelling to Wells from across Canada will perform folk, jazz, country, funk, hip hop, electronic, klezmer, roots, and more. Look at the link ‘ArtsWells Festival of all things art’ on the main page of our website to see the list of performers for this year.

Visitors to Wells should be prepared for all kinds of weather and adventure. At 1200 meters, you’ll find our clean, crisp mountain air invigorating and will want to take advantage of the surrounding nature and adventure (hiking, canoeing, mountain biking, gold-panning).

Early Bird tickets available until June 15th! $40 for adults (regular $60) and $20 for youth (regular $30). Children 12 and under are free.

Student Performance/Arts Wells Opening (2008-08-01 at 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM)

Literary Reading - Luanne Armstrong (2008-08-09 at 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM)

The Island Mountain Arts Public Gallery in Wells, BC is pleased to announce that novelist Luanne Armstrong will be doing a literary reading on Saturday, August 9th.

Luanne Armstrong, MFA, Ph.D, is a novelist, freelance writer, editor, and publisher. She is deeply interested in writing about place and nature. Her new book, Blue Valleys, An Ecological Memoir, a book about her lifelong relationship with her family’s farm in the Kootenays, was published in the Fall of 2007 by Maa Press. Her research interests also include the ethics of autobiographical writing, ecological identity, and writing as inquiry. She has published over fifty stories and essays in magazines and journals, .

Luanne is the author of thirteen books, including poetry, novels, and children’s books. She has been nominated for numerous prizes and awards. Her first novel, Annie was a best-seller in Germany. Her YA novel, Jeannie and the Gentle Giants, was nominated for Canadian Library Association’s Book of the Year; the Sheila Egoff BC Book Prize award and the Red Cedar award. It placed second in the Silver Birch Award. It was also named by McNally Robinson Booksellers in Winnipeg as one of their top ten all time best children’s books. Her essay, Tuning the Rig won the Canadian Author’s Association first prize. Her most recent novel, The Bone House was shortlisted for the Canadian Sunburst Award for Science Fiction and the Relit Prize for Fiction. Her new children’s book, Pete’s Gold, based on a true story of lost gold on her farm, will be out next spring from Ronsdale Press.

Admission is by donation. (Free for students in her course)

Annual Celtic Harp Concert and Dinner (2008-08-13 at 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM)

The Island Mountain Arts Public Gallery in Wells, BC is pleased to announce the annual Celtic Harp Concert and Dinner that will be taking place on Wednesday, August 13th.

The dinner will be in Barkerville, starting a 6pm followed by the harp concert, which will take place at the Sunset Theatre in Wells at 7:30pm. The concert will be featuring Kim Robertson, Sharlene Wallace, Sunita Staneslow, Lori Pappajohn, and Fiddler, Gal Shahar.

Born in Wisconsin and classically trained on piano and orchestral harp, Kim’s discovery of the Celtic harp in the mid-70’s grew into a profound love for the instrument, setting her upon the path of exploration for which she is now widely known. A renowned performer and instructor, her work encompasses over 20 album projects, 11 volumes of harp arrangements, three instructional videos and an international itinerary of concerts and retreats.
As a pioneer in the American folk harp movement, her original compositions and arrangements of traditional Celtic music have stretched the boundaries of the harp for a new generation of performers. Combining innovative techniques with a passionate sense of tradition, she brings a modern touch to a centuries’ old instrument.

Sharlene remembers being 7 years old and making a model harp from bits of wood and nails, using rubber bands for strings. Years later, Sharlene sculpts sound through her musical vehicle, the harp. Now an accomplished, innovative harpist, recording artist and composer, Sharlene explores Celtic, South American, and contemporary genres.

Sunita Staneslow has played in concert halls and pubs from New Zealand to Tel Aviv. A graduate of the Manhattan School of Music, Sunita is classically trained although her passion is traditional music. She specializes in both Jewish and Celtic music and leads workshops for harpists throughout North America. Sunita has released 12 CDs on several labels of Jewish, Celtic and classical music and published twelve books of her arrangements of music for the harp. Sunita was a founding member of the innovative VIDA ensemble, which performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. In addition to solo performances Sunita also performs in The Blue Harp Duo with harpist Tali Glaser who is the second harpist with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Her other duo is with renowned clarinetist Mati. Sunita is a frequent guest with the Celtic Band, ‘Celtic Connection’.

Lori Pappajohn is known for her impeccable teaching skills and her great humour. She has taught numerous Beginner Harp courses at IMA inspiring many newcomers to play this enchanting instrument. Director of the wildly popular Winter Harp Ensemble, Lori has performed in Great Britain, Canada, the USA and Chile. Her former ensemble, Harps International, which was sponsored by Columbia Artists of New York, was featured at the International Jazz and Pop Harp Conference, the World Harp Congress and the International Folk Harp Conference. Lori specializes in styles ranging from Celtic to Latin to World, often integrating harp with percussion, singing, medieval instruments and story telling. Her 1994 album, Celtic Harp for Christmas, is an international success and was followed by a music video, a documentary and six world-class albums.

Gal Shahar is one of the new generation musicians in Israel creating new music fused with traditional styles. Classically trained since early childhood, Gal’s first passion was early music and he specialized in the authentic Baroque style of string playing. For several years, Gal performed with the Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra in addition to performing chamber music and recording with several world music ensembles. Ten years ago, after traveling around Ireland, Gal focused his creative talents on Irish music and formed the band Evergreen which performs Celtic and original music. Evergreen has recorded two successful albums and has become one of the most popular ethnic bands in Israel. Gal is well known as a teacher in northern Israel where he currently teaches over 20 private students in the art of violin playing. In addition, Gal offers workshops around Israel teaching classical violinists to play Irish fiddle music by ear. He also performs in the fiddle and harp duo, Tzalool, with harpist Sunita Staneslow.

Tickets are just $40 for both the dinner and concert, $25 for just the concert.

Exhibition Opening - Flow, Evelyn Armstrong (2008-08-15 at 7:00 PM to 2008-09-30 at 9:00 PM)

The Island Mountain Arts Public Gallery in Wells, BC is pleased to announce the Opening of Meritt artist, Evelyn Armstrong’s Exhibition of sculptures, Flow on Friday, August 15th, 2008 at 7:00pm at the IMA Gallery.

“Evelyn Armstrong works within the realm of conceptual sensualism taking the sculptural installation as a framework to investigate or meditate on her notions of time passing, energies harnessed, or allowed to flow, and the functions of loss longing and desire…Flow is about time”

All are welcome to attend the Opening and Artist Talk at 7pm on Friday, August 15th.

Concert - Garnet Rogers (2008-10-12 at 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM)

The Island Mountain Arts Public Gallery is pleased to announce the upcoming concert of Garnet Rogers on Sunday, October 12th.