Cowichan Public Art Gallery ‘Summer Art Fair’ will run for eight Saturdays from July 6 to Aug. 31 in Duncan
It has been said that art enables us to find ourselves, yet lose ourselves at the same time.
The Cowichan Public Art Gallery, which first opened its doors in 2017, is bringing their outdoor Summer Art Fair back to Duncan for eight Saturdays from July 6 to Aug. 31 at the Heritage Green Door property at 126 Ingram St.
The gallery, which is a registered charitable organization that was first created with the ambitious goal of hosting ongoing international, national and local art exhibitions, is inviting artists to rent one of their 10 spaces for 10 foot by 10 foot tents where they can sell their creations from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. during the fair, which will coincide with the popular crowd-drawing Duncan Farmers Market. To hold your spot at this year’s fair visit cowichangallery.ca/art-fair/.
Artists are responsible for their own tents and it is recommended that they pair up to show off their creations. The rental cost per artist is $30 per Saturday adding up to a total of $240 for all eight Saturdays during the fair. Artists who need assistance pitching their tents can contact info@cowichangallery.ca.
“As a public art gallery we pay artists to exhibit their work, and we also bring artists here from outside the valley for people to see,” said gallery president Jock Hildebrand. “This will be the third year and the event has been very successful with some artists occasionally bringing $2,000 a day revenue, although that’s not always the norm.”
Hildebrand said that while there is no deadline for artists to apply for a spot, it is recommended that all applications come in by the end of June a week prior to the opening of the art fair. Otherwise as long as they have the space, interested artists are welcome to it.
“The last two events were very well received by the general public. Vendors were successful and it engenders a sense of the arts around our art gallery in our heritage building,” said Hildebrand. “Our hope is that the artists displaying their work as well as art enthusiasts checking in will make it a successful event yet again.”