Parksville will host a national exhibition dedicated to an art form that stretches back thousands of years.
The McMillan Arts Centre (MAC) will be home to the Mosaic Artists of Canada 2023 Exhibition from July 1 to Aug. 27.
Its theme is ‘Transitions’, which gives the artists a lot of scope, according to Debra Hagen, an artist with the MAC (133 McMillan St.).
“It can be transitions in colour, it can be transitions in life, as you age. There’s transitions from caterpillar to butterfly,” said Hagen. “It gave a unifying theme but still gave artists a lot of scope to do what they do best.”
A mosaic can be a pattern or image constructed with small pieces of stone, glass or tile, to name a few materials, and held in place with plaster. They were popular in the ancient Mesopotamian, Greek and Roman civilizations and the art form has continued on to the present day.
A juried exhibition is planned for the arts centre’s Concert Gallery, which will be judged by international jurors Jason Dussault, Marian Shapiro and Mireille Swinnen. It will be a blind juried process, so the judges will not know whose artwork they are adjudicating.
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“We don’t often have the opportunity to focus on mosaics here. Quite often our work is acrylics or watercolour,” said Jennifer Bate, executive director of the MAC.
“And to be able to focus on a medium such as mosaics gives us an opportunity to teach people.”
Mosaic artists will be coming from around the Island, Alberta, Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick.
“I couldn’t be more excited,” said Bate. “The fact that we’re inviting, and will be welcoming, mosaic artists from across the country — many of them are staying in local hotels and Air BnBs.”
There will be an Artist Talks series, taught by different experts from near and abroad, which will cover topics such as the history of mosaics. A full schedule of Artist Talks, workshops and classes can be found on the MAC’s website.
A community mosaic project is also planned and the finished piece will be displayed in the MAC’s new community art garden.
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