
Bonnyville’s Aurora Visual Arts Association (AVAA) will hold a juried art show and sale at the Bonnyville Ag Society rodeo grounds February 22 and 23.
“Juried,” for the uninitiated, means exhibitors may choose to have their works judged and considered for prizes. Herman Poulin of St. Paul will be one of the judges, the other is to be confirmed.
The public is welcome to come and enjoy the artworks, meet the artists, and maybe buy some favourite pieces.
The AVAA is a group of artists who meet regularly, create together, and support each other by sharing their knowledge and techniques. Beginners and dabblers are welcome to join as are accomplished artists.
But for many people, painting or other arts are a solitary pursuit. Marilyn Brockhoff, who is organizing the AVAA show, says an art show is often the public’s best opportunity to see work that isn’t normally on display.
And some of it is very, very good.
“There’s lots of artists in this area that we as club members don’t know. They sit in their room and they paint, and then you might see them at a farmers market or something like that,” she said. “They are a solitary group.”
Even club members, she said, often need convincing that their pieces are good enough to show. But the club is there to encourage them.
“We do have some that just do it for the fun,” Brockhoff said.
“We’ve had some in the past that paint at home, and I’ve never seen any of their paintings. And it doesn’t matter how much you ask, ‘please bring in or please show,’ they won’t.
“They don’t feel it’s good enough, which is way too bad because we try to encourage them. You never know, that one that’s in the bedroom might be a masterpiece, but they’re too scared to show it,” she said.
“So we try and build up a little bit of confidence. There’s never any negativity on anybody’s work that does come through here. We try and give the encouragement and point out what’s good.”
The show will be open to the public from 2:00 to 8:00 pm on Saturday, February 22, and from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm on Sunday February 23.