Art fanatics will be brushing up on all Oak Bay has to offer, with the eighth-annual Bowker Creek Brush Up, happening Sunday, Aug. 11, 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
More than 40 artists will display and sell their art at the event, which is set up along Bowker Creek between Oak Bay High school and Hampshire Road.
Since 2005, the free event has offered artistic displays, demonstrations by featured international artists, music and refreshments to those who support the community project.
“This is a really great opportunity for everyone to see some celebrity artists, like Pat Martin Bates and Robert Amos, but also the incredible variety of artists in our community,” said Flo-Elle Watson, president of the Oak Bay Community Artists Society. “It’s also a great day for the surrounding businesses and the artists, as there are 3,000 to 4,000 people in the area in one day.”
Participants pay a fee of $50 to be part of the event, but while Oak Bay artists are not juried, those coming from outside the district are selected by a panel.
This year, along with the special celebration of youth artists, two returning artists have gone from youth to establishment — Caitlin Ambery and Garrett Petersen have attended the Brush Up since they were 16. Now at 20, the two Oak Bay natives have found homes at galleries throughout the community.
“We’ve always believed that the artists in Oak Bay are their own best juries,” said Watson. “If you feel confident enough to show your work to the public, then that’s good enough for us.”
This year’s event will also see chefs Aaron Hall and Gian Franco Mosca donate the proceeds of their samplings to benefit the Society of Creative Homefulness at Woodwynn Farms.
For more information, visit the Oak Bay Community Artists Society, or see more at oakbay.ca.