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Vote for your favorite art at TOSH

Latest show allows visitors to give their thoughts about which piece sings to them
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Just one of the evocative works that await

Its members include such notable artists as Emily Carr, Lawren Harris and J.A.S. MacDonald and some local members of the Federation of Canadian Artists (FCA) will have their art work on display for four weeks at The Old School House art center (TOSH) in a juried exhibition. Established in 1941 as a national not for profit organization the FCA is a community of artists and art lovers whose mission is to share and promote the passion and pleasure of the visual arts through exhibition and communication.

The Arrowsmith Chapter, one of several on Vancouver Island, has been in existence since the mid 1990’s and represents at present fifty artists who are developing, emerging, and whose objectives are to develop and maintain high standards and quality in their work. Prior to their hanging, the works which are on display until Saturday, Nov. 5 were juried digitally by three senior members in Vancouver who also chose five award winners.

Oceanside artist Laura Hilts won an award of excellence for her piece titled Solomon’s Seal.

The acrylic painting was named after a plant which was in a bouquet of flowers on display at TOSH.

Hilts said Dixie Dean, one of the many volunteers at TOSH, is also a master gardener and often brings in bouquets of flowers she has grown in her garden and this particular one inspired her.

“She makes beautiful floral displays and this one really caught my eye,” she admitted.

Hilts has been painting, drawing and creating for over 40 years.

While she works in many media, her acrylic endeavors only started about seven years ago when she moved to the Island.

Since 2006 her pieces have been chosen in every juried exhibition the Arrowsmith Chapter of the FCA has presented at TOSH.

Hilts has won many awards for her paintings with the Federation of Canadian Artists, Arrowsmith Chapter, Oceanside Festival of the Arts and the Ottawa Watercolour Society. Her paintings have been chosen for exhibit at the Federation Gallery in Vancouver and published in Art Avenue.

She is also a member of TOSH10, where she shares a gallery and working space.

Recently, Hilts made the drive down to Sidney where one of her pieces was chosen in Sidney Fine Arts Show.  Hilts said four members from the Arrowsmith Chapter of the FCA had work selected for that show which is quite an honor considering how prestigious the event is.

The Sidney Fine Art Show is a world-class juried art show featuring work by artists primarily from around B.C.

Presented by the Community Arts Council of the Saanich Peninsula, the two day show which runs this weekend is for serious artists and patrons of the arts.

Of the more than 1,200 pieces of art to adjudicate for the show, the jury selected only 384 of the best. Hilts said with so many excellent pieces submitted this year for the show she was thrilled to make the cut.

The two upstairs galleries at TOSH currently display the work of 23 artists who represent the Arrowsmith Chapter of the FCA and the work showcases original and diverse art presented in many different mediums.

Other award winners in the TOSH show include Lisa Danesin with Skylight No 3, Leslie Gregory with Commander, Pat Scrivener with Red Hot and Cool Blue 3 and Allan Dunfield with An Afternoon Marsh.

All the work is for sale and the contributing artists have also donated some of their work as door prizes. People who visit the gallery can enter a draw to win some art work.  They are also asked to vote on their favorite for the People’s Choice Award.

The event is on until November 5 at The Old School House located at 122 Fern Road West in Qualicum Beach.