For the month of January my artwork is featured at Picture Perfect at 339 Bernard Avenue in Kelowna, BC. I’m excited because I have a whole WINDOW to myself! On display are some originals, prints and art cards. There are more in the back too so if you go by be sure to ask to see the rest of my work. Thanks for stopping by!
Once again I am in charge of media relations for The Gingerbread House Event and I just sent out our first official professional press release to nearly 30 media outlets in Kelowna. Just in case I missed any or if you don’t catch this information on one of those mediums, here is all the info and how you can find out more about this marvellous event. (PS I must confess that I didn’t write this myself, my wonderful husband did the wonderful write-up :)
2nd Annual Gingerbread House Event Bringing Gingerbread to Life In Support of the Okanagan Boys and Girls Clubs
Kelowna is Bringing Gingerbread to Life in Support of the Okanagan Boys and Girls Clubs
Kelowna, BC – The 2nd Annual Gingerbread House Event would like to invite the public to a family fun day at the Parkinson Recreation Centre on November 27th, 2011. The event is in support of the Okanagan Boys and Girls Clubs Cool Moves Program. The Cool Moves program promotes healthy eating and physical activity for kids. As a result of participating in games and activities of this program, participants will also gain cooperation and team building skills as well as confidence and feelings of belonging.
The core goals of the event are:
Create a family friendly event and atmosphere that promotes fun
Provide funds and food to the community through the Okanagan Boys and Girls Clubs
Ensure that anyone can participate regardless of their financial situation
The Event has three categories to provide different challenges for different people: Open, Packaged Kit and Chef Category. The Open Category allows entrants to build their house at home and bring it to the event. The Packaged Kit is where each entrant receives and builds a packaged gingerbread house kit right at the event. It’s an excellent option for the family to come for a fun event during the day.
Family Packaged Kit Category Photo by Ivy Mills
The Chef category allows cooks and chefs to enter their creation in a bragging rights competition.
Chef Category Photo by Ivy Mills
Registration in the Gingerbread House Event is available now at www.gingerbreadevent.com. Registration is $20, $25, or $30 depending on category and age. Rules and registration forms are available at our website.
Dozens of entries and hundreds of public viewers are expected at the event. The Gingerbread House Event awards over $1000 in cash and prizes. A public choice award will be presented this year to the most popular entry as chosen by the viewers.
Want to see the houses without building your own gingerbread house? No problem, the gingerbread houses are available for public viewing from 3-6pm. Viewing is $2/adult, $1/child or free with a non-perishable food donation to the Okanagan Boys and Girls Clubs Christmas Hampers.
Note to potential sponsors: There are still sponsorship opportunities available. You can get involved by: Becoming a Major Sponsor ($350+), sponsoring a Packaged Kit for those unable to afford the entry fee ($25), renting an 8’ table to display or sell your products/services ($50), or donate items for the raffle.
About The Okanagan Boys and Girls Clubs: The Okanagan Boys and Girls Clubs is a leading provider of programs to children and youth that support the healthy physical, educational and social development for over 6,000 young people and families each year throughout the Okanagan valley. Each centre creates a safe, supportive environment where children and youth experience new opportunities, overcome barriers, build positive relationships and develop confidence and skills for life. Our programs focus on an individual’s strengths and capabilities, and all programs embrace the principles of equality and inclusion. They help young people grow healthy, happy and safely from birth to adulthood, and are a resource and support for parents throughout their family’s involvement with us.
About the Red Hot Chili Paddlers Dragon Boat Team: The Red Hot Chili Paddlers are a co-ed recreational dragon boat team with the Kelowna Dragon Boat Club. The team is comprised of fun loving, active, outgoing paddlers from their 20’s to their 60’s from many walks of life who share one goal: To Have Fun! In 2010 the Red Hot Chili Paddlers undertook the planning and production of the 1st annual Gingerbread House Event with a vision of creating a premier event, a Kelowna family tradition, and an annual fundraiser to support the Okanagan Boys and Girls Clubs, and the local community.
Last weekend I was at the 2010 Grad and Wedding Expo at Rotary Centre for the Arts in Kelowna, BC. There were hundreds of booths and a big fashion show, but the most memorable and fun part of the show were the interactive booths by Voth Photography and Okanagan Digital Media Productions. (Oh and I also loved the booth by Cupcasions where we got to try two kinds of cupcakes. Yum!)
Okanagan Digital Media Productions and Okanagan Photo Booths are owned by videographer/editor/producer John Thiessen. To attract a crowd to his display, he brought a portable photo booth with him to the show. It worked! Moms, daughters, brides, grooms, best friends, all were lining up to take photos in his photo booth. I didn’t even realize how much fun it would be until I was given our photos. They are so cool. This was definitely a highlight of the show.
The brilliant part about his marketing plan is that every single person who visited his booth and got their pictures taken went home with photo-strips with his website and phone number on them! I’m sure I’m not the only one who looked up his website and posted my photo-strip on facebook.
I’m especially pleased to announce that an Okanagan Photo Booth is going to be at the public viewing of our Gingerbread House Building Competition at Parkinson Rec Centre in Kelowna, BC from 5-7pm on Sunday, November 21st! John is donating the booth and his time to our event. This will be so much fun for the whole family! Be sure to come on out to see the Gingerbread Houses and to get your pictures taken in the photo booth. For a small (optional) donation of your choice you can get your pictures taken and you get to take home the photo-strip! Partial proceeds will be donated to the Okanagan Boys and Girls Clubs.
The other booth at the trade show which ties for the most fun, in my opinion, was Voth Photography. Sean and Melissa are a husband and wife photography team based out of Penticton. They do professional photo shoots from the Okanagan Valley to Vancouver. In their booth they had a basket of props and a big art deco backdrop to take people’s pictures for a facebook contest. They also had black on white signs which you could hold up for effect which said things such as “Where’s the cake?”, “Wedding Crasher” or “Off the Market”.
The brilliant part about their marketing plan is that their facebook contest not only gains them lots of exposure from contestants sharing and tagging the photos, but it also generates likes on their facebook fan page from the contestants and their friends. Expanding your network is a key strategy in any marketing plan but especially important with social media.
Contestants are likely to promote this contest not only on facebook, but on their blogs too as I’m doing here…
The prize for the facebook contest is not one but TWO photo sessions. I would LOVE to win this. It would be so much fun! If you are on facebook and you would like to help me win all you have to do is go to the Voth Photography Facebook Fan Page, “like” their page and then tag yourself in our photo. Please let me know if you do these steps so that I can keep track of our ‘votes’. Thank you! :)
Click this picture to see my photo on the fan page:
Have you ever had a booth at a trade show or art fair? What have you done to gain exposure at your booth?
If you’d like to read a story about what I did to draw attention to my booth at the Sun Peaks Arts and Culture Festival last winter, you might be interested in these blog posts:
I love it when people prove to me that dreams can come true. My fiancé has been dreaming of a Gingerbread House Building Competition for the last 4 years and this year he is making it happen.
Our vision is for this premier event to begin a Kelowna tradition and annual competition to support the Okanagan Boys and Girls Club and the local community. With the support from local chefs, we aim to display some of the amazing talent found in the Okanagan Valley.
Our event takes place on Sunday, November 21st at Parkinson Recreation Centre in Kelowna, BC. The packaged kit category commences at 10am and at the same time people can start dropping off their open category creations. The public viewing will take place from 5-8pm. See the full schedule…
If you’d like to participate in this event, please visit the Registration page of our site. Sponsorship and donation opportunities are also available. Partial proceeds from this event will be donated to the Okanagan Boys and Girls Clubs and all of the non-perishable food donations we receive will go towards their Christmas hampers.
All of the information you need to become a sponsor, a participant or a spectator can be found on our website at: gingerbreadcompetition.ca.
We would be pleased to hear any feedback you have including where you first heard of this event. If you live in the Okanagan you may have heard ads on the radio from our media sponsors at SilkFM, SunFM and AM1150! Have you seen our website, our twitter page, posters, facebook page, flyers, or facebook event? Or is this the first place you are reading about it?
When I moved into my art studio in August 2007 it was like a dream come true, and about 10 years earlier than expected. It was one of those things where I couldn’t really afford it, but I couldn’t afford not to either. The amazing part was that I did not seek this studio out, the opportunity presented itself to me almost like a gift from the Universe.
When I first moved into my studio I sent out an email inviting people to a watercolour workshop.
I received an email back from Carrie Harper, an artist who I had never met but who was on my mailing list from a mutual contact a few years back. Her email was short and sweet: “Any advice on Studio hunting in Kelowna… I have been looking for a while and finding spaces very expensive. Thanks.” I wrote back to her saying that I didn’t really know of any studios for rent.
Then only a couple of weeks later my studio partner told me that she was going to have to move out. I called Carrie up and asked her if she was still looking for a studio space. She came to see the studio and she couldn’t have been more excited or a more perfect partner for me. We get along so great, it’s like we are soul sisters.
Every November Carrie and I put together a Christmas Studio Show so that our friends and family can see what we have been creating throughout the year. It has been a joy to have our neighbour Nikki Balfour open her doors and join in on the events. We love the atmosphere of having both studios open where the guests can flow through from one room to the other.
We are thrilled to announce that our show has expanded. This year Nikki, Carrie and I have organized a studio show with SEVEN artists displaying and selling their work ranging from mixed media and photography to jewelry, ceramics and felted Christmas tree decorations! Carrie and I are currently sharing our studio space with another talented artist, Tina Schnellert, and it’s been so exciting seeing all of her new encaustics going up on the walls. You have got to come and see these pieces in person to appreciate their rich texture.
We invite you to our 4th annual Christmas Art Show! Studios 4 & 5, 375 Bernard Avenue, Kelowna, BC Friday, November 26th 5-9pm Saturday, November 27th, from 11am to 4pm (Sunday by appointment)
Get to know the 7 artists displaying and selling their work:
Someone will win this 8×8 acrylic painting of mine for only $50! I donated it to a fundraiser for the Whistler Arts Workshops on the Lake program. It’s an amazing program where the Whistler Arts Council offers art workshops in a beautiful cabin on Alta Lake in Whistler, BC. I was lucky enough to take a workshop there this July and the whole time I was in artist heaven!
Here is more information from the Whistler Arts Council:
The Whistler Arts Council (WAC) would like to invite you to a celebration and fundraiser in support of Whistler Art Workshops on the Lake program. The event will take place at the beautiful Nita Lake Lodge on Sunday, September 12, from 4pm to 7pm.
The event will focus on a raffle of original artwork created by emerging and professional artists including some of the Art Workshops instructors. Raffle tickets for the 8” x 8” pieces of artwork are $50 each. As people’s names are drawn, they choose a piece of artwork; it’s a matter of first come first serve. It is a fun way to purchase amazing and affordable original art! There will be a cash bar, complimentary appetizers and the opportunity to mingle with fellow artists and art lovers.
WAC also invites you to consider contributing to the event by painting a canvas (or two!) for the raffle. Canvases will be supplied by WAC.
The Whistler Art Workshops on the Lake program is entering its 5th season and offers two to four day workshops of introductory to advanced level instruction in visual art led by world-renowned professional artists from across Canada . The workshops are held in the serene and rustic Alta Lake Station House set on the shores of Alta Lake .
David McEown demonstrates watercolour painting at the Alta Lake Cabin during a Whistler on the Lake workshop.
Unfortunately, this popular program is threatened after the recent budget cuts to the provincial BC Arts Council and Gaming Grants. These cuts have greatly impacted arts and culture organizations throughout the province that provide economic, social, and institutional value to our community.
Volunteers, in partnership with the Whistler Arts Council, have come together to create a fun fundraising event that will not only provide a source of much-needed funding, but also offer a forum to showcase local talent.
Please attend this celebration and – if you are an artist – consider contributing a work of art in support of this terrific program that has seen so many emerging artists grow into the creators of sought-after masterpieces.
Deadline for artwork submission is Friday, September 3rd.
Contact the Whistler Arts Council or the volunteers below to purchase your ticket to the celebration or to pick up your canvas for creation.
Thank you and we hope to see you on September 12th!
This excerpt was written by Jenn McElroy, the Event Coordinator at the Whistler Arts Council. For more information about the event you can contact Lisa Geddes or Bea Gonzalez:
Lisa Geddes – (604) 932 6054 or email: lisaandbill at gmail dot com
Bea Gonzalez – (604) 932-8390 or email: beagon at telus dot net
If you find yourself in Whistler, BC, you can visit the Whistler Arts Council at at Millennium Place, 4335 Blackcomb Way, across from the Brewhouse.
Kendra Smith and Keya White painting canvases for the fundraiser
This weekend I am heading to Sun Peaks, BC where I will be paired with Bella restaurant. There are four other artists who will also be paired with resort restaurants on Saturday, July 17th as guests tour from location to location throughout the stunning alpine village. Visitors will learn about various art mediums while tasting some of the finest wines British Columbia has to offer and indulging in sumptuous tapas created by Sun Peaks Chefs.
Reservations are required, tickets are 49.00$ per person. For more information you can check out the Sun Peaks Resort website or contact Tourism Sun Peaks at .
On July 18th there is a second opportunity to meet the artists and view our work in the “Art Zone” outside Tree Line Studios in the heart of the village.
Participating artist include: Kendra Smith (myself) Ken Farrar Vic Strikaitis Joanne Hastie Sol Metal Designs
The Evans Gallery co-hosted this event tonight in conjunction with the Wine Festival Society to display and offer for sale works they have collected over the years that have appeared on the cover of Wine Festival guides. Two of my pieces were included: one that appeared on the Spring Wine Festival Guide cover in 2006 and the other on the 2007 Sun Peaks IceWine Festival brochure. The art show goes until May 15th, 2010.
Tonight was the grand opening for Sopa Fine Arts ‘U8’ event. ‘U8’ stands for Under 800 as in all of the original art in the show is priced under eight hundred dollars. On our way to the show our friends called us and they were in the line up which they said went down the street. I was hoping to get there in time to feel the energy of the line up but by the time we arrived everyone had spilled in the front door. It was still electric. The gallery was buzzing. Red dots were flying up on the wall.
I have one piece in this show, a 12×12 acrylic called Rose Hips.
Tomorrow night I am a guest artist at the Sun Peaks Winter Wine Festival during their progressive wine tasting event. I had no idea until the other day that they were going to be selling 600 tickets for this event! I also found out that I wasn’t going to be giving an introduced presentation like I did this summer at the Wine and Culture Festival where I had everyone’s undivided attention for 5 minutes. This time everyone will be meandering to and fro at their own pace between wine venues. It is going to be up to me to attract people over to my table.
Oh my gosh! At first this made me very nervous. I had visions of me calling people over to my table to see what I am doing. Nervewracking!
Then I had an idea… what if I could ATTRACT them to my table without having to say anything. What if I could peak their interest and make them just curious enough that they might come over to my table on their own accord?
Brilliant! … but how to do this? I decided to make a big poster with a schedule of demos on it so people would know when I am doing what. But is this enough to attract them to my table? Not everyone is interested in learning how to paint. Maybe if I demonstrate the watercolour secret tricks of using household items to paint landscapes it will intrigue people. Maybe I’ll even attract a few who don’t have any interest in learning how to paint, but simply want to know how the heck I am going to paint a birch tree with a fork!
This is what I have so far:
Unveiling the Magic of Watercolour5 minute demos showing how to:
6:15 Make a Birch Tree with a Fork!
6:45 Turn Salt into Snowflakes!
7:15 Paint under water with cellophane!
7:45 Use a candle to make a moonlit reflection!
8:15 Turn a carrot into a person!
8:30 Win a Prize! Enter the FREE DRAW before 8:30! Lots of prizes to be won! Grand prize is a limited edition print of Sun Peaks village valued at $270.
I am still nervous, but now in a good way. Even if no one comes over to my table, at least I have a plan. I won’t be painting aimlessly for 3 hours! And if people aren’t interested in my demos, maybe they’ll be interested in my free draw! Everyone likes to win a prize!
So there you have it, this is how I am going to attract people using the magic of watercolour. I’ll let you know if it works. Now only if I knew how to attract people to my art show on Saturday…
On Friday I’m heading to the Sun Peaks Winter Wine Festival to present at the Progressive Wine Tasting event. Then on Saturday I’m having my ninth annual art show! This year it is in the lower lobby of the Delta Hotel.
Sun Peaks Art Show Saturday, January 23, 10am-2pm Lower Lobby of the Delta Hotel
I’ll be displaying originals, reproductions, art cards, magnets and bookmarks. Find me in the lower lobby of the Delta Hotel along with artists Ken Farrar and Sol Metal Designs. This art show is presented by the art gallery Tree Line Studios.
Sun Peaks Ski Resort is located north of Kamloops, BC. You can read more about my art show on my website at http://www.kendraart.com/exhibit.html.
The second annual Wine and Culture Festival will be hosted during Alpine Blossom Season at Sun Peaks Resort July 17-19th, 2009. The art festival is 2-4 on Saturday July 18 where Kendra will be set up in a restaurant at Sun Peaks. There would be 3-4 presentation to groups of 20-25 people and the presentations will be 5 minutes long showing how the art is produced. Kendra will share the history of her art career and her passion of art with the wine drinkers. From 4-6pm Kendra will be painting at her station and available to answer any questions.
On Sunday, July 19, Kendra will be set up in front of Tree Line Studios from 11am-2pm with three other artists from the gallery. At the same time there is a lively Farmer’s Market on Sun Peaks Way, so there will be lots to see and do.
To read more about the art gallery at Sun Peaks, visit Tree Line Studios website, or call them at 250-578-2674 for more information.
My art show at Sun Peaks this year is on Valentine’s Day! It is my eighth annual art show at Tree Line Studios at Sun Peaks Ski Resort, just north of Kamloops, BC.
I am bringing 15 new original paintings for the show!
The gallery at the Chateau Whistler is going to represent my artwork. Ten of my original watercolours are at their Jasper gallery getting framed right now and then they are on their way to being displayed in the Whistler gallery.
Mountain Galleries The Gallery at Chateau Whistler Shopping Promenade • The Fairmont Chateau Whistler 4599 Chateau Boulevard Whistler, British Columbia • V0N 1B4 Phone: 604-935-1862 Fax: 604-935-1896 Email:
Open Studios Art Show Art Studio #5, 375 Bernard Avenue, Kelowna, BC August 8 – 10, 2008 10am-5pm
Open Studios is like a studio crawl and my studio partner Carrie Harper and I will be a part of it! We are opening our studio doors and everyone is welcome!
“Open Studios promotes recognition that the arts are a significant component of our region and contribute to the public awareness about the quality and diversity of art created in our community.
It also provides an educational experience for all ages, which will help foster an interest in and a greater understanding of the artistic process. This program provides a rare opportunity of seeing artists in their own environment and to experience artists discussing and demonstrating their materials and art process.”
I am going to be bringing over 20 new original paintings to my art show at Sun Peaks Ski Resort on February 16th, 2008. My show is at Tree Line Studios which is a beautiful art gallery in the Delta Hotel next to the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. (view map)
I have been showing my work at Sun Peaks for over seven years and I’ve had an art show every year. This is the first time my show will be in February so hopefully I will see some new faces.
Since I was in school for the last two years (taking Digital Media Design) I didn’t have a lot of time to paint. I am so grateful that I bought my commercial printer (an Epson Pro 4000) because even though I was too busy to keep up with the sales of my original paintings, I was able to print reproductions. Having reproductions to fill the spaces on my wall was a life saver.
After two years of seeing the same paintings, I think Sun Peaks is ready for something new. I am excited to be bringing so many new pieces because it will refresh my wall. People want to see an artist grow and I think everyone will be happy to see that I am still producing new work. Some of my new paintings are really different from anything I’ve done in the past. Here is an example:
Everyone is invited to my art show. It is all day on February 16th, 2008 at Tree Line Studios at Sun Peaks Ski Resort just outside Kamloops, BC. Visit Tree Line Studios art gallery at www.treelinestudios.ca.
My art show at the Craft Connection in Nelson, BC has been extended until the end of February, 2008. On November 1st, twenty of my largest framed archival reproductions were displayed, the highest number of framed prints I’ve ever sent anywhere at one time. My watercolour paintings range from birch trees in the snow to skiers and snowboarders; there is something for everyone.
The Craft Connection can be found at 441 Baker Street in downtown Nelson. It is one of the finest art co-op gift galleries in Western Canada. I’ve been a consignment member of this co-operative business since 2002.
This marks the 25th year the Craft Connection exists. On March 1st the store will be moving kitty corner to 378 Baker Street.
For more pictures of my art show, see my art exhibitions page on my KendraArt website.
The Open House at my studio was a big success. Carrie Harper, Kelowna artist and graphic designer and my studio partner, hosted a pre-show on Friday night and it was buzzing with people. What a good feeling. On Saturday we had a steady stream of people and it was great to show everyone our art studio. Thank you so much to everyone who came out and supported us.
Booth 106, Prospera Place, November 10th and 11th, 2007
Christmas Craft Fairs are a lot of fun for me. It is a chance to be in the public and display all of my new work in an open setting. This November I will be at three Christmas Craft Fairs: Kamloops Craft-A-Fair on November 4th at the Coliseum; Kelowna Holdiay Festival of Creations at Prospera Place on November 10 and 11th; Fernie Christmas craft fair November 24th at the Fernie Community Centre.
I am bringing art cards, prints, magnets and bookmarks. If you want to stock up on cards for Christmas, save money by ordering in larger quanities.
I am looking forward to seeing what the other artisans have brought too. It’s always a bustling crowd, so so set aside some time to come and say hi.
See you there!
If you can’t make it to the craft fair, you can order by checking out my art online and then calling me.
The Craft Connection can be found at 441 Baker Street in downtown Nelson. It is one of the finest art co-op gift galleries in Western Canada. I’ve been a consignment member of this co-operative business since 2002.
