MIDDLE EASTERN DRUMMING
Thursday 7-8pm, January 10th-March 13th, 2008
10 weeks course
Location: Kelowna Drum Studio
No experience required, Some drums available
Course will include rhythms and technique on the doumbek (drum) and riq (tambourine)
Cost:$125 or Drop-in $15/class

For information on any course call Trevor at (250)763-3951 or see
www.trevorsalloum.com

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07 Jan 2008

» Thursday 10 January 2008 | 4:30 pm
» Mosaic Books, 411 Bernard Avenue
An informal afternoon hour showcasing the people and ideas featured in Okanagan Q. Join us as local travel experts and adventurers Gloria Meeder, Jock Hildebrand and Carmen Lenihan take us on trips real and imagined, near and far.
» This is a free event. Refreshments will be available at a modest cost.
» Seating is limited, please reserve yours HERE
Sponsored by the Arts Council of the Central Okanagan, Wood Lake Books, UBCO-FCCS, and in support of Project Literacy Kelowna

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TIPS FOR TRIPS, NEAR AND FAR

People are flying out of Kelowna International Airport in record numbers, and while business travel accounts for some of that, the thirst to explore and understand the world beyond our borders no doubt accounts for the rest.

In 2006 passenger volumes reached record levels, at 1,226,442 passengers - a 13.7 per cent increase over 2005, and all projections indicate the numbers will only rise.

This Thursday 4:30 pm at Mosaic Books, Okanagan Institute takes a closer look at the our world of travel with Great Escapes: Journeys of Joy, Adventure and Enrichment, featuring three people speaking about travel trends.

Gloria Meeder is a specialist in world cruises, and she's now booking people for cruises starting in 2009. "As people enter retirement, many are already experienced travellers so now they want to try something different," Meeder says. Something different can look like a 66-day or even a 109-day cruise stretching from South America through to Africa, with multiple ports of call. One of the most popular destinations today is Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

Experienced travellers also opt to follow their passion - whether that means walking treks to see the English countryside through the eyes of William Wordsworth, or learning about the Great Pyramids. Local sculptor Jock Hildebrand's interest in art has taken him through the Tate Gallery in London and into the artist's world in Vietnam and China. It's informed him, and over time, changed his own work.

Another emerging travel trend is the inner journey - which for many includes the desire to take part in retreats of all kinds. One travel company is now packaging tours in India for the North American and European market specifically with a spiritual theme - religious, ayuveda, pilgrimage and spiritual tours.

While India is an obvious spiritual hotspot, the fact is when it comes to spiritual travel, sometimes you don't have to leave home to get there. The Okanagan has its own spiritual travel following, according to Carmen Lenihan, who organizes spiritual retreats as part of the Okanagan Diamond Way Buddhist Group. "Organizing retreats and bringing in various teachers allows people to share a common spiritual journey, as well as share where and how we live. It highlights the commonalities, as well as the differences we face while integrating the Buddhist philosophy into our lives."

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Great Escapes: Journeys of Joy, Adventure and Enrichment is a free event, and takes place at Mosaic Books, Kelowna's independent bookstore. It's presented by the Okanagan Institute in association with the magazines of Wheat King Publishing - Okanagan Arts, Okanagan Home, and Okanagan Q.

Expressions is sponsored by the Arts Council of the Central Okanagan, Wood Lake Books, UBCO Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, and supports the work of Project Literacy Kelowna.

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07 Jan 2008

The Centuria Urban Village Project
in conjunction with
Jock Hildebrand Arts Portal Inc.
is seeking Okanagan artists to fulfill a commission for:

Two large paintings, approximately 5 ft high 7 ft wide each depicting an Okanagan theme, to be located in the foyer of this new upscale condominium project.

EXPRESSION OF INTEREST:
Interested artists are asked to submit:
•    A CD or DVD to include artists’ CV / Portfolio and a maximum of 10 high resolution jpeg’s or bitmaps of selected works
•    A self-addressed stamped envelope

Mail to:    Centuria Call for Artists c/o
        Jock Hildebrand Arts Portal Inc.
        Box 26068
        Westbank, BC
        V4T 2G3

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS:
The deadline for submission is 4:30 pm, January 11th, 2008

BUDGET: Up to $25,000.00

SELECTION PROCESS:
Jock Hildebrand Arts Portal Inc. reserves the right to select any or none of the submissions. Short-listed candidates will be notified by January 18, 2008.

INQUIRIES:
For submission-related inquiries, please contact Carmen Lenihan or Jock Hildebrand at 250-768-3408 or info@jockhildebrand.com.

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04 Jan 2008

Thursday 3 January 2008 | 4:30 pm
Mosaic Books, 411 Bernard Avenue

An informal afternoon hour showcasing the people and ideas featured in Okanagan Q. Join us as smart local luminaries prognosticate a new year: architect Jim Meiklejohn, cultural manager Lorna Gunn, spiritual advisor Marilyn Perry.

» This is a free event. Refreshments will be available at a modest cost.
» Seating is limited, please reserve yours at http://www.okanaganinstitute.com

Sponsored by the Arts Council of the Central Okanagan, Wood Lake Books, UBCO-FCCS, and in support of Project Literacy Kelowna.



THE FUTURE IS WHAT WE MAKE OF IT, EXPERTS SAY

The New Year is all about setting intentions, and if we follow through on our intentions we can pretty much predict how the next year will unfold - whether that means in our personal lives or in our community as a whole. The trick, of course lies in actually following through.

One way to look at our intentions is to examine what we've done in the past. How did we get to where we are, what do we think about the results, and finally, where do we want to go from here? What trends are we seeing in our lives, and what is unfolding before us?

The Okanagan's exponential growth has a lot of people thinking about where we are going and what we plan to do with it all - whether that means coping with our rising population, our changing cultural landscape or even our inner spiritual journey.

On Thursday 3 January at 4:30 pm at Mosaic Book, the Okanagan Institute launches 2008 with Great Expectations: Anticipating a New Year bringing together three people who spend their time monitoring trends in our cultural, spiritual and urban planning environments.

Jim Meiklejohn is a renowned Okanagan architect who played an integral role in designing one of Kelowna's first urban homescapes - The Cannery Lofts. He's also put his own particular stamp on numerous public buildings around this region - from the new Kelowna Secondary School to faculty offices at UBC-O and the spectacular Holiday Inn at Apex Mountain.

Meiklejohn reveals his hopes, fears and predictions for the future of Kelowna touching on such topics as affordable housing, the future of our waterfront and the need for balance.

"The Okanagan is facing great challenges in balancing growth and the environment. I feel it is a time of great responsibility as well as opportunity for Kelowna to be at the forefront of positive change and begin re-shaping our community, and our country, in a significant way," Meiklejohn said. "For instance, are we planning for cars, planning for people, or can we do both well?"

Lorna Gunn is the cultural services manager for the City of Kelowna, responsible for creating initiatives that will stimulate arts and cultural development throughout the community.

Gunn believes creating connection will become the major theme for 2008 as the city moves beyond the concept of art being building centred, into art becoming an expression of the community itself.

"There is a desire to create more identification and neighbourhood pride," she said. "People are feeling isolated and they crave events that are close to their homes. There is a need for creative fitness, and we can do things that can help stimulate that."

Gunn points to the recent Mosaic Bench Project in the Martin Street area that attracted participation from neighbours ranging in age from preschoolers to grandparents. "Through this event, people had an opportunity to meet neighbours, spent time with each other and create something that leaves a lasting legacy."

Of course, not all growth is external. Much of it is internal, as Marilyn Perry has witnessed throughout her career writing and teaching about the spiritual through her association with the United Church and Wood Lake Books.

Now retired, Perry still keeps her eye on trends and suspects that the new branch on the spiritual tree will be the environment.

Already there are environmental groups in Britain, the U.S., New Zealand and Australia devoted to including a spiritual message in their efforts to save the environment. There are even courses now in Canadian universities focused on spirituality and the environment.

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29 Dec 2007

Arts Council of the Central Okanagan

2007 Summary

 

This has been an incredibly busy and exciting year for the Arts Council with the publishing of the new “Okanagan Arts” magazine in April, which is now heading for its fourth published issue. The “Okanagan Arts” is also available on line www.okanaganarts.com , which features an extensive Okanagan-wide events calendar “The Agenda”, a spotlight news corner “News, View and Reviews”, a diverse and very colourful Arts Directory and an on-line platform for the Open Studio’s “Welcoming Door”

 

Huge accolades go to our “Okanagan Arts” Editor, Robert MacDonald and to our Publisher, Jeff Pexa, Wheat King Publishing, for developing such an outstanding representation of our local arts.

 

In conjunction with the “Okanagan Arts” magazine the Arts Council hosted three Open Studios this year. The Open Studios were complemented by the new and in-depth, on-line and comprehensive Arts Directory. The on-line Arts Directory is open to all artists and a special edition of 6000 copies was published and circulated throughout the Okanagan for Arts Council Members.

 

There has been very strong support for the Literary Arts in our community this year.

First with the publishing of the “Okanagan Arts” magazine, followed by the “Okanagan Institute” whose mission it is to contribute to the quality of creative engagement in the Okanagan through publications and events, such as weekly informal afternoons showcasing the people and ideas featured in “Okanagan Arts”, “Q” and “Okanagan Home” Wheat King published magazines. These literary arts events are collectively sponsored by the Arts Council of the Central Okanagan, Wood Lake Books, UBCO-FCCS, and in support of Project Literacy Kelowna.

To find out more about these great weekly events go to www.okanaganinstitute.com

 

The Arts Council is also very pleased to have the OWL, Okanagan Writers League join us as a new member. The OWL has, on behalf of the Arts Council, created a regular writers corner in the “eVent”, featuring the works of local published writers.

 

Accomplishments don’t end here!

 

The summer focused on the development of the Arts Council’s first formal and complete Annual Report. This thirty-one page document provides the reader with an understanding of the make-up of the organization and outcome effects it has on our community. Annual Reports are available through the Arts Council office.

 

New marketing tools including a new brochure, a colourful organizational profile were created, which featured and will continue to feature one of our local artists on the cover.

 

The Arts Council is also very proud to be hosting a new “Okanagan Arts Awards” on February 15, 2008. Working with Arts Councils from all parts of the Okanagan Valley to honour the arts through this new awards program, the awards will acknowledge Okanagan artists or supporting groups or individuals in the categories of music, drama, visual arts, dance, media, design, literary arts, educator and life time achievement.

 

Nominations will be received until 4:00 p.m. on January 10th, 2008.  Awards will be presented at a Celebration and Spirit of BC Showcase at UBCO Kelowna, on February 15th, 2008.  Go to www.okanaganartsawards.com for the dates, forms, and all other details. Nomination packages are also available at your local Arts Councils and Libraries.

 

As you can see it has been an absolutely great year!

 

From All of us at the Arts Council

Wishing a very happy and safe holiday season and a very PROSPEROUS new year!

 

Elke Lange

Executive Director

Arts Council of the Central Okanagan

 

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10 Dec 2007