The Kettle River Art Club opened its doors in Greenwood for the public to meet members and view their work, but the real highlight is how much it’s grown over the past year, with children and potters among the fastest-growing demographic.
The club held its annual fundraising show on May 25 and 26, featuring members showing off their work, from paintings, to artful wood trays, leatherwork, handmade cards and watercolours.
Guest artists are usually invited as well, but this year it was all members, said president Sharon Chambers.
On Saturday, Chambers said it had been a busy morning, with crowds coming in to view the work and what the club had to offer, chat, have snacks and put their names in a draw for art and other prizes. They were also there to learn about the various workshops and classes scheduled for the year.
The biggest highlight, pottery.
“We started hosting pottery classes last December, holding training sessions with people in our pottery room on wheels,” said Chambers. “We’ve had two sessions and there is a waiting list for the third session.”
The main reason for the annual show is to get the public to come in and see what the club has to offer. There is a myriad of classes and guest artists holding sessions, said Chambers, as well as drop-in days where people can come in with their own brushes and paints.
Interest had been rebounding since the end of the pandemic, with the club’s membership growing to around 50 members from all over the Boundary.
“We are not just for Greenwood, we cover the whole valley,” she said. “There’s a lot of verified talent here, many of them older or retired people looking for an outlet and have the time to explore their creativity, paint or do pottery.”
There’s also plenty of room for younger members, with the club also hosting a Kids Program. Initially, the club received grant funding for it, but the club wanted to keep it going to keep children interested in the arts, explained member David Leach.
“The money went away, but our kids and grandkids haven’t,” he said. “They are still interested in the arts and they are still coming. They will be our age one day and we want them to carry on.”
Many of the children in the Kids Program have been active in school programs and showing off their art, like the Art Attack show at Gallery 2. The club is also getting children active in the arts with city-based projects like the upcoming Car Show, with a children’s booth planned to host projects and a colouring contest for prizes. Children will have a chance to either draw their own cars, or take a drawing his grandson, Hunter Ogden, 10, made of a Ford Model A and colour it in.
There are a few other city-wide projects the club is organizing, including phase two of a series of light pole banners.
