LITERARY ARTS

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Icons and Idioms

SNOWSELL ON APPLES
» Thursday 18 February 2010 | 5 pm
» The Bohemian Café, 524 Bernard Avenue
An informal afternoon hour showcasing ideas and people in the Okanagan creative economy. Join us as professor and writer Colin Snowsell explores the nature of political and social power in the Okanagan through the story of his family, and launches his chapbook On Apples.

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» $2 at the door. Refreshments are available at a modest cost.
» Seating is limited, please reserve yours HERE

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Writer Follows in Family Tradition of Outspoken Commentary

Who remembers that Kelowna's mayor from 1930 to 1939 was a furniture dealer named O.L. Jones? And that Kelowna voters sent Jones to Ottawa three times - in 1948, 1949 and 1953 - as the CCF candidate for the riding of Yale? Who remembers that his campaign manager was named Snowsell? The Snowsells once owned and operated over 100 acres of orchard land in the Glenmore Valley. This is not, except in the distance cast by history and forgetfulness, their most significant contribution. The Snowsells' greater influence on the Okanagan was in their socialism, in their activism, and in their support of the CCF and the NDP. If they pioneered anything, it was BC socialism.

The Snowsells would be horrified to know history had remembered them as landowners. Their life was spent in struggle against the propertied classes, and from the 1930s to the 1960s they were known for the courage and pigheaded tenacity with which they fought to keep the valley, the province, and the country out of the clutches of conservatives. It just so happened that their struggle was against the two most powerful politicians the province has known.

On Thursday, February 18th at 5 pm the ongoing weekly Okanagan Institute Express series at the Bohemian Café presents Icons and Idioms: Snowsell On Apples. Join us as professor and writer Colin Snowsell explores the nature of political and social power in the Okanagan through the story of his family, and launches his chapbook On Apples.

When you're driving down Snowsell Street - as the old portion of Glenmore Road will be named, as soon as the Glenmore Bypass is operational - you'll be driving down a street named after the one local family that came within a hair of upsetting the conservatives' rise to power. That's the message of On Apples, a chapbook by Colin Snowsell, a writer and professor of Communications at Okanagan College and the great grandson of Edwin and Felicia Snowsell, the pioneer Glenmore orchardists who arrived in the Okanagan in 1925.

"When the city announced it was renaming Glenmore Road, my students started asking me if I was one of THOSE Snowsells," said Snowsell. "What bothered me wasn't that they didn't know who the Snowsells were anymore - Kelowna's a pretty big city now and the name's not that common - but that the city didn't seem to know who the Snowsells were either. Did they own orchards? Yes. But so what? It's what the family did in the community, not so much what they owned, that should be remembered."

Both Felicia Snowsell and her son Frank, former head of the provincial NDP/CCF and one-time MLA for the now-defunct provincial riding of Saanich, opposed W.A.C. Bennett on the ballot in tightly contested races. In the essay - part lament, part revisionist history - Snowsell speculates how Kelowna, and the province, might have looked, had the contests gone a different way.

The novelist Caterina Edwards describes Snowsell, who is also a fiction writer whose novella, entitled The Frollett Homestead, is scheduled for release in March, as "more than a promising writer: he is a full-blown talent."

Colin Snowsell holds a MA in Communications Studies from the University of Calgary. He is finishing a PhD through the Department of Art History and Communication Studies at McGill University.

Snowsell's essays have been published in This Magazine, Maisonneuve and PopMatters. Earlier versions of Snowsell have appeared on MuchMusic (in the role of Calgary alt-indie impresario), obtained a journalism diploma from the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology and worked in corporate communications at Greyhound Canada's head office in Calgary.

Prior to joining the Communications faculty at Okanagan College, Snowsell taught professional communication at the University of Saskatchewan.

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER ONLINE CLICK HERE

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Icons and Idioms: Snowsell On Apples takes place at the Bohemian Café. This marks the 126th event the Okanagan Institute has held since the Express series got underway in July 2007.
Express has played host to many Okanagan luminaries, including former deputy secretary general of Amnesty International Derek Evans, artists Lee Claremont and Gary Pearson, BC Book Award nominee Don Gayton, CBC Literary prize winner poet Harold Rhenisch, distinguished editor and author Jim Taylor, poet laureate and professor John Lent, animator and filmmaker Jim Cliffe, community activist Don Elzer, dancer David LaHay, architect Jim Meiklejohn, culinary artist and writer Heidi Noble, broadcaster Marion Barschel and many others from a wide range of creative fields.

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The Okanagan Institute is a group of creative professionals that has gathered around the goal of providing events, publications and services of interest to enquiring minds in the Okanagan. We partner with individuals, organizations, institutions and businesses to achieve optimal creative and social impact.
Our mission is to ignite cultural transformation, catalyze collaborative action, build networks and foster sustainable creative enterprises. We invite the participation by all members of the creative community.

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12 Feb 2010

Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies at UBC Okanagan
3.Description : Event date: Wednesday, February 10, 2010, at 7:00 PM
Location: Art 218, UBC Okanagan



Michael MacLennan divides his time between Toronto,Vancouver and Los Angeles. His plays have been produced throughout Canada, Europe and the US. His books include Beat the Sunset, Grace, The Shooting Stage, Last Romantics, Life After God and The Good Egg. He has won a Jessie, two Voaden Prizes, Theatrum National Playwrighting Award and was twice nominated for the Governor General's. As screenwriter, Michael has been nominated for five WGC Screenwriting Awards. He was co-executive producer of Queer as Folk, creator/ executive producer of Godiva's and Jpod, and consulting producer on Being Erica.
This is a free public event.

Sponsored by the Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies at UBC Okanagan, UBC Okanagan Bookstore, The Canada Council for the Arts, Okanagan Regional Library. and the Alternator Gallery. 

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30 Jan 2010

A Reputation for Tolerance: examining contested geographies of belonging in Kelowna, BC

DATE: Thursday, January 28th at 2:15pm in the UBC Okanagan Library room 306

Cindy Holmes is a PhD candidate in Interdisciplinary Studies and holds a SSHRC doctoral fellowship at UBC Okanagan. Her dissertation research draws on critical race, queer feminist and spatial theories to examine how interlocking forms of violence, safety and belonging are imagined and produced in different contexts and scales. Alongside her academic work, she has worked with community groups for over 20 years in the areas of violence against women, violence in the lives of LGBTQ people, health promotion and anti-oppression education. Cindyís forthcoming and most recent publications are: (Forthcoming January 2010). Troubling normalcy: Examining ëhealthy relationshipsí discourses in lesbian domestic violence prevention  in J. Ristock (Ed.) Intimate partner violence in LGBTQ Lives. New York: Routledge; and (2009) Destabilizing homonormativity and the private/ public dichotomy in North American lesbian domestic violence discourses in Gender, Place and Culture 16(1), 77-95
This event is free and open to the public.

CONTACT: David.jefferess@ubc.ca or Lindsay.balfour@ubc.ca

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22 Jan 2010

Join authors Gillian Wigmore and Matt Radar on January 14th at 6pm as they read from their original works. This event is free and will be held in room Art 106 at UBC Okanagan. Everyone is welcome.



Gillian Wigmore grew up in Vanderhoof, BC, and currently lives in Prince George. Her first book soft geography was nominated for the Dorothy Livesay Poetry prize and won the Relit Poetry Award in 2008. Recently, she has been shortlisted for both the Malahat long poem prize and the Great BC Novella conest.



Matt Radar is the author of two collections of poetry, Miraculous Hours (Nightwood 2005) and Living Things  (Nighwood 2008). Published in magazines, journals, and anthologies around the globe, Rader's poems and stories have been nominated for numerous awards including The National Magazine Award, the Pushcart Prize, The Gerald Lampert Award, and The Journey Prize. He teaches creative writing at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, in British Columbia's Lower Mainland.

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05 Jan 2010

Gallery Vertigo presents a series of workshops for writers this month.
These day-long intensives are ideal for new writers or for experienced writers looking for an injection of inspiration.
(photos of instructors attached)

November 14th

Getting Started - Karen Meyer

This workshop will be based on Natalie Goldberg's popular book, "Writing Down the Bones - Freeing the Writer Within." An instant success, Goldberg combined her ten years of studying Zen meditation with writing and discovered that, in fact, writing naturally transcends into the spiritual. I will review some of the many lessons from inspiring book. Together, we will learn about Beginner's Mind and trusting the process of writing. Also, we will go over the six rules of writing practice. We will do a number of timed writing exercises and a game. We will learn to recognize our own obsessions and strong feelings for a person or situation as rich material to write about. We'll end the day by taking a walk to the Bean Scene for some immersion in caffeine culture and a chance to write in a different environment.

November 21st

Introduction to Creative Non-Fiction

Currently, the most popular type of writing is creative non-fiction -- the truth with a twist.  Your work is based on reality, but through your unique interpretation.  Articles, stories and all kinds of books from biographies to travelogues fit into this category.  Learn the limits of when it turns into fiction!
Come and explore what and how to writein this exciting genre.

November 28th
 
Stories from Life: Writing your Memoirs - Devon Muhlert
 
A creative approach using various arts disciplines to coax out the stories of your life and then writing them for others to understand what they have meant to you.
 
December 12th
 
How to Win Writing Contests - Dona Sturmanis
 
Want to become an award-winning writer, get published and receive prize money for your efforts?  Find out all about writing contests (including the best ones), how to discern the real ones from
scams, how they work and strategies involved for entering and placing...or even winning!
 
Registration Information:
 
Cost is $65.00 per workshop for NOAA Members and $80.00 for Non-Members.
Special Price: $240.00 for all for 4 workshops for NOAA Members only.
Sessions will run on Saturdays, 10am to noon, break for one hour and then from 1 to 4pm.
Pre-registration is required at Gallery Vertigo by Tuesday November 10th.
Payment is due at time of registration. Cash or cheque please.
Class size is limited, so please register early to avoid disappointment.

Instructor Bios:
 
Dona Sturmanis
 
Dona Sturmanis, BFA, MFA, has been a professional writer, editor and publisher for 30 years. Her poetry, fiction and journalism have won many awards and has been published in magazines and journals across Canada. She has taught writing courses for Okanagan College Continuing Studies for 17 years at all campuses.
 
Karen Meyer

Writing began to interest Karen Meyer at the age of eleven. In her early twenties, she travelled South East Asia and then made a living performing at special events as Paisley the Face Painter. She earned both an English Lit degree from UBC and a photojournalism diploma from Western Academy. These experiences led into a job as staff writer for Focus On Women Magazine in Victoria. She is currently a writer in residence at Gallery Vertigo.

Devon Muhlert

Devon L. Muhlert, B.Ed, CMP, is an award-wining writer, columnist, songwriter, and facilitator/teacher. Now reinvented as a delusionist, she wrote a weekly newspaper column, *Devon's Delusions*,  for years.   Creativity is her forte, and she especially loves crossing artistic disciplines to invite inspiration. For ten years she translated for the International Choral Bulletin based in Belgium, and for over 20 years was a music director which included writing and producing several musicals.  
 

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01 Nov 2009

In honour of the book! Join us for a book fair, exhibition of books and festive launch party at Gallery Vertigo.
 
Book Exhibition: November 17th to December 12th
 
Gallery Vertigo is pleased to present a group exhibition of books from November 17th to December 12th at the gallery in what is becoming an end-of-the-year tradition. The event is designed to offer gallery visitors a warm festive atmosphere in which to enjoy books of all kinds. The exhibition will include paperbacks and hardcover books by local writers, broadsheets and comics, chapbooks and journals as well as some interesting found books, artist book works, CD's and DVD's. It's a great opportunity to purchase books by local writers. Or, just drop by to browse and enjoy some interesting books and music.
 
Call for Submissions:
Work to be included in this exhibition should be delivered to Gallery Vertigo by Saturday November 14th at 4pm. Writers, musicians, filmmakers and publishers, please submit up to ten copies of your book or CD/DVD. Artists are welcome to submit one-of-a-kind book works or book-related artworks. Also, sign up to be part of LAUNCH!
 

LAUNCH!

Saturday, November 28th - 1 to 4pm

Join us for an afternoon celebrating the book arts in the Okanagan. This festive launch party is in honour of the talented writers and musicians among us. Master of Ceremonies kevin mcpherson eckhoff (photo attached) will host the event which will feature both well-known and emerging authors interspersed with lively musical entertainment. (Eckhoff is an instructor at Okanagan College, and a writer and publisher in his own right.) Admission is by donation. Everyone is welcome.

1PM - Readings
Join us from 1 to 2pm for readings by many of the writers involved in the current exhibition of books. Enjoy excerpts, short stories and poems.
 
2PM - Book Signing
A book signing will be held from 2 to 3pm. This is your chance to meet and chat with the writers among us, and to have books signed, either for your own collection, or as a personalized gift.
 
3PM - Story Circle for Children
At 3pm, we will have a children's story circle with local storytellers and children's authors reading stories from their collections.
 
Holiday Cheer:
Hot mulled cider and goodies will be served all day. Local CD's will be featured for your listening pleasure. Come enjoy the festivities!

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23 Oct 2009

Wendy Morton, the force behind the national phenomenon, Random Acts of Poetry, be reading in Kelowna at UBC Okanagan on Wednesday, October 14, 7 PM—Student Services 026. Admission is free and everyone is welcome.

Morton has published five books of poetry, most recently What Were Their Dreams: Valleys of Hope and Pain- Canada's History.  This is a book of photos and poems based on historical photographs of the Alberni Valley on Vancouver Island.   The poems in this book were originally displayed beside historical photos at the Alberni Valley Museum for an exhibit exploring150 years of history.  She interviewed several residents, including survivors of residential schools, who told her stories and brought her photographs from which she wrote her poems.

Morton’s other books include Undercover, Private Eye, Shadowcatcher, and Gumshoe. She lives in Sooke BC and she has been an insurance investigator for 27 years. Her memoir, 6 Impossible Things Before Breakfast, was published in 2006.   Wendy Morton initiated the first “random acts of poetry” on strangers: reading them a poem and giving them a book. By 2004, 27 poets across Canada joined her and since 2006, with the sponsorship of The Canada Council for the Arts, dozens of poets across Canada have been involved in bringing poetry to  the streets of their cities and towns. Wendy Morton has also been WestJet Airlines' poet of the skies and Daimler-Chrysler's poet of the road.

This event is sponsored by the Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, the Department of Creative Studies, and the UBC Okanagan bookstore.  For more information, contact Nancy Holmes at 250-807-9369 or <mailto:nancy.holmes@ubc.ca>nancy.holmes@ubc.ca.

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09 Oct 2009

On Tuesday, September 29th, 2009, at 7:30 p.m., Poet, philosopher, teacher, musician, and Governor-General Award winner, Jan Zwicky will be reading and in conversation at the Alternator Centre for Contemporary Art.

Zwicky is one of Canada’s most esteemed, celebrated, and socially-engaged poets. She is the author of more than eight books. Her poetry and critical essays are equally concerned about ethics and responsibility in our often dire modern moment. For Zwicky, the arts—be it music, poetry, or philosophy—can assist us in moving towards social justice and unity. As she puts it in her Governor-General’s acceptance address, “Lyric art is intimate — when it is good it is always, whatever its medium, a struggle to achieve an integrity of spirit, body, and mind.”

At the LIT@ALT reading, Zwicky will read from her poems and critical works and also engage the audience in a conversation about the broad topic of art and responsibility. This is truly a unique opportunity to hear and interact with one of country’s important and thrilling writers.

The Philosophers’ Café: LIT@ALT Reading and Discussion Series, a new program designed to enhance the community’s understanding of contemporary art/writing and stimulate discussion about cultural issues, is organized by the Alternator, an artist-run centre in the Rotary Centre for the Arts at 421 Cawston Ave.  Admission is by donation.  There will be food stuffs and drink stuffs, too.

Call (250) 868-2298, check www.alternatorgallery.com or e-mail info@alternatorgallery.com for information.

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16 Sep 2009

Learning Through the Arts (LTTA) is an acclaimed education initiative that is transforming classrooms in over 2000 classrooms across Canada and around the world. In this unique program, local artists partner with teachers to deliver the core curriculum through the arts. LTTA lessons keep all students active, interested and involved in the learning process. Created in 1994 as a way to enhance the goals, methods and the culture of education, LTTA is now one of the world's most innovative education programs. For more information, please visit our website at www.ltta.ca

Artist Criteria (Artist Educator, Salary-Contract Basis):

Practicing community artist (including but not limited to: drama, music, visual arts, dance, puppetry, media arts/digital technology, creative writing, storytelling, aboriginal) in the community

Open to viewing their art as it relates to multiple areas of curriculum

A willingness to work collaboratively with teachers on both short and long term goals

Ability and willingness to participate in four days of training per year ñ mandatory training dates for Fall 2009 are September 22-25, 2009 (Must be available during the day)

Dedicated to youth and possessing a commitment to integrated education

Francophone/Bilingual applicants are especially encouraged to apply

Please email your resume and cover letter,
No later than September 8, 2009 to:

Lori Sherritt-Fleming
Regional Manager, BC
Learning Through the Arts
lori.sherritt@rcmusic.ca
1-800-414-4077
Cell:  778-319-6524

Due to the high volume of applications received we will only be contacting successful applicants for an interview.

Interviews: September 21st, 2009
Hollywood Road Educational Services Room 5
1040 Hollywood Road
Kelowna, BC
V1X 4N2


All selected artists will be required to attend the
Fall Artist Training sessions: September 22nd-September 25th, 2009

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20 Aug 2009

You likely have heard about the issue of potential cuts to arts funding in BC over the past few weeks.  These double-barreled cuts are centered currently on BC Arts Council annual grants, and Direct Access Funding from the Gaming Branch.  No formal announcements have been made by BC Arts or Gaming: it is anticipated that the September 2 provincial budget may contain information.  

This letter is coming to you from a task force drawn from concerned central Okanagan arts groups, a list of which is at the end of this email.  We are getting in touch to ensure everyone is aware of these potential cuts and funding freezes and we encourage you and your organization to discuss this issue with your supporters, sponsors, donors, board members, artists and members of your local community.  

We hope that you will choose to advocate for the arts at this critical time.  Let your concerns be heard in a positive fashion, bringing a message of the strong economic and cultural impact the arts have on our communities and the province.  

Many provincial arts groups have already expressed their concerns to their MLAs and to other government officials.  Good, up-to-date information is available online at   http://www.allianceforarts.com.

We ask your support in taking the message of your organization to your local MLA – if at all possible, in a face-to-face meeting, before the House sits again August 25.  Clearly these funding issues affect many arts organizations in the province. To get more information on your local MLA, you can go to  http://www.leg.bc.ca/MLA.

We feel it is vital to make the business case for continuation of funding - how many dollars does your organization contribute to your local economy; and what the impact is, both financial and cultural on your audiences and artists.  The Alliance for Arts and Culture quantifies the provincial impact of the arts at 80,000 jobs and $5.2 billion annually.  You need to tell your financial and job story.  

You can also encourage your organization to send a letter, and keep sending letters, talking about the impact of proposed funding cuts on your community by writing to pertinent elected officials.  Office addresses on each elected official’s web pages.
Arts - Minister Kevin Krueger -  Kevin.kruegermla@leg.bc.ca
Gaming - Minister Rich Coleman -  rich.colemanmla!@leg.bc.ca
Premier Gordon Campbell -  premier@gov.bc.ca

Please forward this email, perhaps with a covering note, to your in-house email list.  We know the government needs to hear from the groups and organizations impacted and they especially need to hear from the community itself - including individuals and businesses - that the arts matter to them.  

We also ask you to respond to this email - either to the organization which sent it to you - or to  ArtsResponseOkanagan@shaw.ca, so that we can measure the reaction to this information and tell all MLAs and others about the ongoing awareness of this issue among BC Arts groups.

Thank you - please react within the next two weeks.

PAK - Professional Performing Arts Alliance of Kelowna: Ballet Kelowna, Chamber Music Kelowna, Community Concerts Kelowna, Okanagan Symphony
Arts Council of the Central Okanagan
Rotary Centre for the Arts
Okanagan Institute

    
 

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10 Aug 2009