Mariel Belanger, The Earth Reclaimed her

MFA student, Mariel Belanger is the next Artist-in-Residence in Studio 111 from June 26th to July 8th, working on a project entitled The Earth Reclaimed Her.

During her residency, Mariel will work with a hide tanning frame, tuli reed mats, and her wedding dress collection, onto which images will be projected. As creative research, the intent of the project is to create a constructed projection space that is both aesthetically pleasing and will be documented for later installation work. Working with digital photography, Mariel is digitizing and constructing various parts to “They Connect” a story about a young Sylix woman on the cusp of a rite of passage.

Mariel Belanger is of the Nkmaplqs–Okanagan Indian band, a part of the Syilx–Okanagan Nation, in the interior of BC. She is currently a MFA Interdisciplinary Performance candidate at UBCO where here research is focused on Performance Theory, Indigenous Epistemologies, and Indigenous ways of knowing and being.

Mariel will also be working with Dr. Shawn Brigman on tukʷtniɬxʷ – tule mat house: Indigenizing the Built Environment on the UBC Okanagan campus from July 11-14, in conjunction with the FCCS Summer Indigenous Intensive.

Studio 111 supported by the University of British Columbia Okanagan Faculty of Creative & Critical Studies and co-organized by the Alternator Centre for Contemporary Art.

Toby Lawrence, a PhD student in FCCS, has been working over the last eight months to bring activities into this space that are not confined to the parameter of conventional art galleries.

The public is welcome to drop by the studio until July 8th to learn more about this project and Mariel’s work, and are invited to attend an opening reception on Friday, July 7th from 6 to 8 pm in the studio.

For more information, contact Toby Lawrence, curator/facilitator at ubcostudio111@gmail.com
Studio 111, Rotary Centre for the Arts, 111-421 Cawston Ave., Kelowna, BC

Lake Publishing Society and the Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies at UBC are pleased to present a Woodshed Reading with poet Emily Nilsen. Nilsen will be launching her new limited edition chapbook, Place, No Manual, and reading from her new book, Otolith, on Saturday, June 17th at UBC’s Woodhaven Eco Culture Centre, 969 Raymer Road, Kelowna at 7 p.m.

Lake Publishing produced 50 copies of Place, No Manual. These were hand-bound and printed on handmade paper created by Kelowna printmaker Laura Widmer. This lovely chapbook will be on sale for $20 at the reading.

Emily Nilsen

Emily Nilsen is a graduate of UBC Okanagan’s MFA program and lives in Nelson, BC. Her debut poetry collection, Otolith, was published this year and takes readers through the lush B.C. wilderness and scrutinizes the many fault lines between human beings and the natural world. Nilsen was a finalist for the CBC Poetry Prize in 2015 for her poem “Meanwhile,” which is featured in the book. The book, which also includes some of the poems in Place, No Manual, is the subject of a short interview on CBC radio.

Parking for the event is on Raymer Road though anyone with mobility issues is welcome to park on the property. There will be some refreshments, the event is free and open to the public. Note: there are no public washrooms onsite.

See Lake Publishing Society on Facebook or contact Nancy Holmes at 250-764-9666 for more information.

FCCS alumna Heather Leier will be the next Artist in Residence in Studio 111, located in the Rotary Centre for the Arts.

Heather Leier graduated with her BFA at UBCO’s FCCS in 2012, and went on to pursue her MFA in printmaking at the University of Alberta. She now resides in Corner Brook Newfoundland and continues to work on her art practice.

From May to August, Heather will travel by vehicle from Corner Brook, Newfoundland to Vancouver, BC and back with the purpose of conducting phenomenological research for her project On Being Young Woman. By wearing solely a uniform labeled “Young Women” as she exists with, travels through, and intervenes in a variety of Canadian cities and rural spaces, Heather will explore the ways she is labeled and how her age and gender affect her specific experiences and understandings of place.

Throughout June, Heather will occupy Studio 111 with her findings as she considers her Canadian travel experience through the organization of the Young Lady’s Archive of Canadian Experience.

Studio 111 is supported by the University of British Columbia Okanagan Faculty of Creative & Critical Studies and co-organized by the Alternator Centre for Contemporary Art. Toby Lawrence, a PhD student in FCCS, has been working over the last eight months to bring activities into this space that are not confined to the parameter of conventional art galleries.

“In Kelowna, exhibition and project space for emerging artists is very limited. Studio 111 provides an important public platform for exhibition, experimentation, and arts-based research.” Says Lawrence. “Throughout June and July, Studio 111 will be occupied by UBCO alumni and current graduate students: Heather Leier, Mariel Belanger, and a collaboration between Krista Arias, Lindsay Harris, and Juana Ochoa.”

Until June 24, the public will have the opportunity to speak directly to Leier about the latest developments in her project, On Being a Young Woman, and her experiences travelling across the country, framed by the project’s intentions. Leier welcomes ongoing dialogue, and will host Open Studio hours from 12-3pm, Tuesdays to Thursdays.

For more information, contact Toby Lawrence, curator/facilitator at ubcostudio111@gmail.com

Studio 111, Rotary Centre for the Arts, 111-421 Cawston Ave., Kelowna, BC

You are invited to Border Free Bee’s Pollinator Picnic to celebrate Kelowna’s very first Nectar Trail!

What: Pollinator Picnic
Who: Border Free Bee’s
When: Sunday, June 25, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: Summerhill Pyramid Winery, 4870 Upper Mission Drive, Kelowna

Rhonda Neufeld

The picnic will take place at the Summerhill Winery Heritage Lawn on Sunday June 25th from 11am to 3 pm. The Pollinator Picnic’s purpose is to raise awareness of the importance of wild pollinators by providing an afternoon full of fun, family-friendly community activities and to celebrate the wild success of The Kelowna Nectar Trail Project. We aim to have booths and displays set up from our many community partners. There will be music and a great creation opportunity for kids and adults: A Swarm in June, a community art project with Armstrong artist Rhonda Neufeld.

The Kelowna Nectar Trail is a 7.4 km series of flowery stepping stones through the south Mission neighbourhood that helps pollinators move safely through the urban landscape. The more than 80 businesses and private homes, as well as every single school along the route, who have signed on to the Trail will be invited as special BeeIPs (Bee Important People). The Nectar Trail has already inspired other community groups to create Nectar Trails in their own neighbourhoods- Glenmore neighbours are hosting a nectar trail project and UBC is creating a nectar trail through the campus.

The Pollinator Picnic and the Kelowna Nectar Trail are part of Border Free Bees, a SSHRC-funded research project that uses art and design to inspire conservation and stewardship of native bees. The Kelowna Nectar Trail has brought together UBC students and faculty members, environmental partners, community groups, and members of the public, and is supported by a grant from Go Wild, a community initiative funded by Telus through the World Wildlife Federation.

For more information contact Kelowna@borderfreebees.com or visit borderfreebees.com/events/upcoming-events.
Nancy Holmes, Associate Professor, nancy.holmes@ubc.ca, 250-764-9666

Do Not Erase, 2017 BFA graduating student exhibition

Awards given to graduating BFA students recognize academic and artistic achievements

guests at the 2017 BFA graduating exhibition gala reception

The gala reception for this year’s BFA graduation exhibition, Do Not Erase, was another successful event with over 350 community members, students, faculty and staff in attendance.

Each year, the top students in the graduating class are recognized for demonstrating outstanding academic and artistic achievement over their final years in the BFA program, with a number of donor funded and faculty and university awards.

Awards were given to the following students from the 2017 graduating class:

The Wilden Creativity Award: Rho Shaw

Norma and Jack Aitken Prize in Visual Arts: Gabe Delaney

Asper Graduating Prize: Shannon England

DVC Purchase Awards: Rho Shaw, Gabe Delaney, Pamela Turner & Jackie Deck

FCCS Dean’s Office Purchase Award: Gary Dewhurst

Creative Studies Department Award: Shayla Ritchie & Pamela Turner

Left to right: Wilden award recipient, Rho Shaw, Jackie Deck, Karin Eger-Blenk and Pamela Turner

FCCS is grateful to the donors who make these awards possible for emerging artists in our community. The Wilden Creativity Award is given to a student who has produced a body of work that reflects a powerful message as well as a high level of originality, passion and accomplishment. The Asper Graduating Prize is awarded to a graduating student who has completed course work and project work in video production at the Asper Centre for Artists’ Video. The Norma and Jack Aitken Prize in Visual Arts has been endowed by the family and friends of Norma and Jack Aitken to honour their memory and to recognize Norma Aitken’s lifelong contributions to the visual arts.

In each studio course in Visual Arts, students create works which are frequently displayed in the FINA Gallery in the Creative and Critical Studies building. Visit our new blog showcasing some of our current student works.