Photo gallery: New RVAC exhibitions excite

Two new exhibitions opened June 2 at the Revelstoke Visual Arts Centre; the first featuring artist Tsuneko Kokubo titled Plant Memory and the second an annual exhibition featuring various mediums from students at Revelstoke Secondary School titled Five in celebration of its fifth year.

Kokubo’s acrylic paintings exploring medicinal and edible plants came alive on the walls of the Visual Arts Centre. A particular piece — Mr. and Mrs. Needham’s Scarecrows Protecting Their Dandelions — was inspired by learning about the English settlers arrival to the Revelstoke area in the 1800s. Tsuneko related with the sentiment Needham expressed after building his homestead in Revelstoke and wishing he had a piece of home with him so sent across the ocean for dandelion seeds.

Pride was palpable for both the students and their teacher, Theresa Browning, when their principal, Greg Kenyon, spoke about the Revelstoke Secondary School art exhibit, “This show has driven the arts program at the school. I overhear students saying they want to create a couple pieces that make it into the exhibit each year. The exploration of medium and the themes blow me away.”

The exhibit features an array of themed pieces in various mediums ranging from photography, paintings, glass mosaic to pencil sketches. The students are given a theme to work with but the medium they choose to represent the theme is entirely up to them. “I am just a tour guide. I teach how to work with the individuals mediums but each student is responsible for their own expression,” Theresa Browning explains.

The various art forms of Five and the Earth inspired hues featured in Plant Memory make for a dynamic presentation at the Revelstoke Visual Arts Centre. The work will be featured from June 2 to June 23.