Category Archives: Arts

The 2023 Creative Spaces Garden & Studio Tour

The ‘Creative Spaces Garden & Studio Tour’ returns on Saturday, July 8. 

“This is a self-guided tour, and once you get your ticket, you can choose what gardens or artist studios you want to visit, in what order, and you can stay as long as you want at each place,” explained Nancy Kendel, a museum board member whose garden will be among those exhibited. 

“We have 17 venues this year, 21 participating artists and gardeners,” added Managing Director/Curator Melanie Boyle.

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Michael Keith (Part 1): Inspirations then and now

Nur Michael Keith has been living on Cortes Island for the past 6 years, but has been a professional musician for most of his 56 years. 

In the beginning of a two part series, he talks a little about his earlier life, inspirations and we listen to three of his songs. 

At one point during our interview I asked about his first name, ‘Nur.’ 

Michael explained, “It was something I gave myself. ‘Michael’ is from my birth parents, ‘Keith’ is from my adoptive parents and ‘Nur’ I gave myself. I sometimes go by Nur Michael Keith.”

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The Thursday Afternoon Art Collective brings ‘Between Heaven and Earth’ to the Old Schoolhouse Art Gallery

The Thursday Afternoon Art Collective will be coming to the walls of the Old Schoolhouse Art Gallery at 6 PM on Friday June 9. The talents of Lisa Gibbons, Madhurima Braaten, Dayna Davis, Caz Ratcliffe, Denise Drury, Jane Newman, Karen McDiarmid and Darshan Stevens are on display in ‘Between Heaven and Earth.’ The exhibition closes on Sunday June 18. 

“I’ve been doing art classes in the studio for the last maybe 10 years,  mixed media art classes for different members of the community, children and adults,” explained Lisa Gibbons.

“A core group of really dedicated people just kept coming and emerged as this vital core group that we have right now. We were meeting just before the pandemic, but it was still in the form of a class. Then we had to take this break and, for me personally, I also had to take a break for health reasons. The studio was dormant. We were all  in our own creative spaces at home.  Gratefully, I was able to come back to the studio late last fall,  maybe November, and this core group of women really wanted to continue coming back as well.  We just naturally morphed into a collaborative group because everybody’s got so much experience now. So we left behind that old model that we were doing before, it’s just really beautiful how it’s blossomed, and we’re doing things together.” 

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Local band celebrates 20-year-anniversary with live show

By Louis Belcourt, CKTZ News, through an LJI grant from Canada-info.ca

Editor’s Note: Greg Osoba is a CKTZ News contributor. 

A local band is hosting a free show to celebrate their 20th anniversary.

Six Foot Johnson — a band including Garden Stein on drums and vocals, Danfver Johnson on harmonica, rhythm guitar and vocals, Dave Murray on lead guitar, and Greg Osoba on bass and vocals — has practiced “over 800 times at about 40 practices a year,” including numerous live shows, over their 20 year career. The group considers themselves “Cortes Island’s house band.”

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The Cortes Island Museum AGM, Upcoming Garden and Studio Tour & search for an Events Coordinator

The Cortes Island Museum just held its AGM. They have hired two summer students, plan to hire an Events Coordinator, and are gearing up for the Creative Spaces Garden and Studio Tour this summer. These are the topics that Managing Director/Curator Melanie Boyle discussed with Cortes Currents. 

The Museum AGM was at Mansons Hall, from 1 to 3:30 on Saturday May 6, 2023.

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