Antonia Olak captures equine essence Eleven years ago, Antonia Olak was walking in the trails near her home in Qualicum, when she encountered a couple of equestrians, one riding Gypsy, the horse that would inspire a series of paintings capturing the spirit of its kind: freedom, speed and surging power. It was a eureka moment….
American philosopher and naturist Ralph Waldo Emerson eulogized weeds as plants ‘whose virtues have not been discovered. It’s in that spirit that Artist Diana Durrand portrays the common dandelion (Taraxacum Officinale), using bold paintings, delicate drawings and elegant sculptures, all intended to override our entrenched suburban bias against this much maligned species. Her tribute, 100…
by Craig Spence Who knows where the wellsprings of creativity might be found? Growing up on a farm near the hamlet of Carlea, Saskatchewan, Patt Scrivener used to cycle to spot where a culvert flowed under the Canadian National Railway tracks, forming a pond that stayed throughout the summer. It was her ‘secret place,’ where…
November 17, 2018
Craig Spence
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Small is beautiful when it comes to fine art and Christmas shopping at Rainforest Arts!
August 27, 2018
Craig Spence
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For artist Bryan Wilson there’s a direct line between his love of the outdoors, and his passion to create art, and it shows up on his canvases. “I fish lots, I love my boating,” he said. “Any time I go out and do the things I love, I’m always thinking about my art.” And gathering…
July 5, 2018
Craig Spence
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Raising a chuckle takes skill and hard work Sally Mann, whose work is featured at Rainforest Arts for the months of July and August, wants people to ‘have a chuckle’ viewing her art. That, as it turns out, is serious business. “My work doesn’t have to have a message,” she said. “If it makes somebody…
May 28, 2018
Craig Spence
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Chemainus sculptor, artist, writer, Bernice Ramsdin-Firth, at 84, has been shaped by the experiences of a rich and varied life, and she’s still looking for media and techniques to express how that feels and what it means. She, and her husband Gord, live in what can best be described as a comfortable ‘West Coast Californian’ style home…
February 22, 2018
Peggy Grigor
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Rainforest Arts operates solely on the strength of our volunteer team that provides a multitude of services from Managing Committee to Graphic Designer, Painter & Handyman to our dedicated Store Staff. All these folks work tirelessly many hours each week. All of them are generous and caring people and we love them all! Recently, I…
November 4, 2017
Peggy Grigor
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You should have heard the panic when we recently closed our doors for a week. People kept popping in asking “Oh no! You’re not going out of business are you?”
May 3, 2017
Peggy Grigor
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Rainforest Arts is pleased to announce that Gera Scott Chandler of Amused Creations is our featured artist for May 2017. Born and raised on Vancouver Island, Gera has been gathering kelp and bark from her local beaches all her life. As a child, she would weave them into wall hangings and baskets. The west…