Nineteen Manitoba artists will show their work in historic Red River location
The St. Andrews Heritage Centre is the historic home of Reverend William Cockran and, in modern times, hosts displays of significant artifacts combined with local knowledge that helps to tell the story of the people who came before us. This month, the Heritage Centre will also be home to modern artistic creations to complement their displays as they are hosting their Seventh Annual Community Art Show.
Katelyn Boulanger
A floral painting from 2024’s Community Art Show
“Our art show is combines 19 local artists, mostly from St. Andrews, but some from within the Interlake and Winnipeg. We have 49 different pieces, ranging from paintings, to prints, to various different sculptures. It is truly a wide variety of different pieces. And, it really encapsulates the communities, not just St Andrews, but what Manitoba is,” said Breanna Markiewicz, Museum Program Coordinator
The show starts on Feb. 7 with the grand opening from 1 to 4 p.m. and runs until the end of the day on Feb. 28.
When you think of 19 artists, you may not realize the scale of this show, but there are multiple pieces from each artist, allowing the entire heritage centre to get a fun art flair.
“Some artists are bringing one type of medium, so (perhaps) just paintings, but there are other artists who are bringing both hanging works and sculptures as well. It really encapsulates the talent and how some artists are not just limited to one discipline, but they’re multi-disciplinary in their art,” said Markiewicz
The Heritage Centre, being one of few examples of distinctive historic Red River architecture left, made with wood from the Birds Hill area and limestone from local quarries, is an excellent venue for displaying these pieces of art in a place where they can be appreciated.
Some of the many notable unique pieces that will be on display will be works where snowflakes have been preserved, and also sculptures that look like wood, but when you take a second glance at the card, you realize are made from paper.
Markiewicz explained, in addition to wanting to host some amazing art in the Heritage Centre, they often host classes and groups in the building, so this annual show is a bit of an extension of their goal to be a space for community gathering.
“(It’s) a hub for being creative. We’re always hosting our workshops and fostering an environment for artists and those looking for a creative outlet. This place isn’t only a historical representation of what built St. Andrews, but it’s also a place that shows what it is today. And, what better way to do it than showcasing artists across the municipality and beyond, right? (We) don’t want to just leave this place as something that’s representing the past, but also a representation of what it’s become as well,” she said.
As this is the seventh time that the Heritage Centre has hosted this event, it’s become an annual favourite event for many residents, and Markiewicz also enjoys the show.
“Being able to interact with the different artists and their art, learning about everybody’s story, and how they got into art, and seeing how it manifests. It’s really inspiring,” she said.
Markiewicz also finds this show is a way to connect with fellow artists and draw inspiration from their work, even if it’s not the kind of art that you make.
If all of this interests you and you would like to check out the show, it’s pretty easy to do so as it’s free admission and starts on Feb. 10
“From the 10th, we start from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and essentially, whenever the museum is open, people are welcome to show up and peruse the gallery. They’re also welcome to view the museum as well. It’s open to everybody of all ages, so all you’ve got to do is just show up,” said Markiewicz.
After the show is over, the Heritage Centre will continue to be open and free to attend for anyone who would like to view the historical displays, as they are open all year long.
If you would like to keep up with everything they are doing, there are a few different places to keep up to date.
“We post all our workshops on our Instagram and Facebook pages. We actively remind our audience of what’s going on, whether it be this weekend or the coming weekends. We also announce all our workshops a week before the next month, so there’s ample time to peruse our workshops for the month (ahead). We also send out a newsletter as well that people can sign up for, and we do as well, have posters up within our center,” said Markiewicz.
She hopes to see any residents who are interested in checking out the art show stop by this month.
“Now more than ever, it’s more important to go into the physical art spaces and engage with art pieces in person. It’s easy to feel you’re getting your fix of art online, but especially in a digitally dominant world where AI is kind of complicating the art space, I feel that it’s now more than ever important to go to an art show, see what people are making and take in authentic work,” said Markiewicz.
