Promoting creativity and helping a good cause

BY HOLLIE WATSON

The Kirkland Artists Association is preparing to mark a milestone this weekend when it hosts its 25th Anniversary Art Expo and Festival on the grounds of historic Lantier House.

Beginning Friday, “hundreds of original works in a wide range of media – from oils to acrylics to pastels – will be on display.

“Seeing it’s our 25th, we wanted to do something special, so we’re holding the exhibition outside as well as indoors,” explained president Patricia McDermott.

The annual show has proven popular with local art aficionados, who will find everything from portraiture to landscapes to florals during the three-day festival.

“The celebrations will start off with a gala cocktail for the mayor and special guests that evening, followed by a vernissage with wine and cheese for the general public,” she said.

The theme of the annual spring exhibition is ‘Promote Creativity.’

“In the past, we’ve had just one donating artist for our fundraising raffle, but this year we’ll have two, Murielle Leblanc and Roy Shintani.”

All proceeds from the raffle, as well as 15 per cent of all paintings sold, will go to the West Island Palliative Care Residence.

“The piece I’ve donated is a watercolour of Mont Tremblant in the fall,” said Shintani, who gleans much of his inspiration from nature.

“I paint simple scenes – leaves, a flower, pine trees,” said Shintani, for whom art has been a life-long avocation.

“I’ll also be exhibiting about another half-dozen paintings, both in watercolour and oil,” said the retired engineer, who joined the association in 1996.

The Kirkland Artists Association also holds a fall exhibit, and many works by its 54 active members are showcased every November at the municipal library. Throughout the year, members further explore their artistic horizons through workshops, meetings, and other activities.

The exhibition gets under way Friday with a vernissage from 7 to 9 p.m., and continues Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Lantier House (the Kirkland Cultural Centre), 11 Lantier Ave. For more information, call 514-630-7129 or 514-695-7660.