Here and Now: Contemporary Art on the Sunshine Coast

Artists from Langdale to Earls Cove are invited to send in a request for a studio visit, along with a brief artist’s statement and images of their work.

As part of the Sechelt Arts Festival’s 10th Anniversary celebrations, October 17 to 27, 2013, a new direction for the visual art show will be presented in the exhibition Here and Now: Contemporary Art on the Sunshine Coast. The exhibit will mirror the collaborative main stage concept of showcasing the work of artists who demonstrate experimental approaches in their use of materials and ideas. Two professional curators, Karen Benbassat Ali (Program Director, Satellite Gallery) and Karen Duffek (Curator, Contemporary Visual Arts & Pacific Northwest, Museum of Anthropology), have been invited to take an in-depth look at visual art on the Sunshine Coast.
The curators will embark on a tour of Sunshine Coast artists’ studios in the next few months. Artists from Langdale to Earls Cove are invited to send in a request for a studio visit, along with a brief artist’s statement and images of their work. Details of the Request for Studio Visit can be found on the festival website at www.secheltartsfestival.com, or in hard copy at the District of Sechelt office. Deadline for a request is April 30, 2013. Shortlisted applicants will be contacted directly about scheduling a studio visit. Artists will be selected for the exhibition by July 15, 2013, with the show taking place October 17 to 27, 2013 at the Seaside Centre in Sechelt. Each artist whose work is included in the exhibition will receive a predetermined artist’s fee.
The exhibition, Here and Now: Contemporary Art on the Sunshine Coast, will reflect the shifting artistic landscape of the lower Sunshine Coast, searching out artists who take an experimental approach to their practice, including the use of old or new media, methods, and sources of inspiration and provocation. The Festival Committee hopes to establish a new direction for the visual art component of the festival as a platform from which the Sunshine Coast visual arts community and audience can continue to grow.
The 10th anniversary edition of the Sechelt Arts Festival will be presented by the District of Sechelt, in partnership with the Sunshine Coast Arts Council. This year’s festival will continue to push artistic boundaries, expanding existing programs while continuing to support local artists in all genres with professional-style showcases, concerts, workshops and exhibits, encouraging original collaborative cross-genre presentations. The Festival will be hosted at venues around the District of Sechelt, including Raven’s Cry Theatre, the Sunshine Coast Arts Centre, the Sound and the Seaside Centre, with accessible events for residents and visitors to the Sunshine Coast. The opening weekend will be presented in collaboration with the highly successful Sunshine Coast Art Crawl, creating well-rounded, high-caliber arts events to entice off-Coast visitors to come visit our vibrant community in the shoulder season.