Residents of Bonnyville had the unique opportunity this weekend to participate in a variety of workshops and demonstrations in Bonnyville's first Arts Days, an event that organizers hope to make annual.
It was part of National Culture Days, funded by the Province of Alberta, and even Lindsay Blackett, provincial minister of culture and community spirit, came out for the show and got his hands dirty in the pottery studio.
The event opened with a performance by the Bonnyville Centralized High School (BCHS) band, and Blackett was in attendance, fresh from dropping in on similar events in St. Paul and on his way to Slave Lake and Edmonton.
He thanked Genia Leskiw, MLA for Bonnyville – Cold Lake, for inviting him, and congratulated Bonnyville on its first Arts Days, and for being a featured community.
He said there were two great things about the event, firstly, “it gets families and people in the community out to participate in arts and culture, whether it's music like the band performing here today, whether it's art exhibits, literary arts — it's all something that we get to celebrate throughout our communities and it's being celebrated right across the province.”
The second thing, he added, was showcasing the province's amazing hometown artists.
Rose-Marie Cameron, local artist who was on the organizing committee for the event, said Blackett's presence an honour.
“I thought that was awesome,” she said. “It put us on the map, really. I know he had a good time.
“He went over to the pottery studio and made a plate. He was very positive and he was pleased to see the number of people who were here to see the band. I thought that was a real honour, for him to come. It's a great thing for Bonnyville.”
Cameron also said the event went well, and she hopes it will be an annual one, though that depends on government funding
“I'm really happy with the way things turned out,” she said. “We had a steady stream of people coming in, lots of people stopping and talking about our art work. I wish we could have had a little more music through the whole day.”
She added next year, she plans to have more performing art and music, though she was impressed by the variety of art showcased this year.
Besides paintings and pottery, there was also sculpture and jewelry on display, as well as workshops and demonstrations on photography, theatre arts, vocal performance, dance, face painting, sock puppets, and various musical performances, including the Fort Kent Band and singer-songwriter Carmen Lucia.
The event also featured a silent auction with proceeds benefiting the local food bank.
Cameron also hopes if the event becomes annual, it will begin to draw people from St. Paul, Vermilion, and across the Lakeland area.
“The quality of art is good,” Cameron said. “It's comparable to any city that I've been to. It's starting to show that Bonnyville has a lot of culture that we're willing to share with the public and it's really nice that the Alberta government gave us money to do this.
“I think Bonnyville is opening its arms a little bit to the arts now.”
