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Friday, November 8, 2013
Cowichan culture on the map, is funding next? Speaks Easy: pinpoints 200 cultural hotspots as arts community prepares bid for more funding Peter W. Rusland
News Leader Pictorial
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owichan’s ongoing virtual map of arts, culture and heritage was unfolded during a recent community evening in the Cowichan Theatre. Culture vultures of all ages flocked to the session primed with hands-on workshops about words, music, drawing, and photography before hitting the theatre stage for a power-point presentation showing some 200 spots plotted on the Cowichan Valley Arts Council’s website so far. CVAC’s mapping project, called Cowichan Culture Speaks Easy, allows folks to log onto cowichanculture.ca/speakseasy and plot places — past and present, and future — of personal local significance. The map will ultimately paint Cowichan Valley Regional District directors a clear picture of the valley’s arts-and-culture scene. That picture will ramp a request to start a regional artsand-culture “If we have to committee, go to referenwith an annual budget dum, we need a to fund crelot more eveative groups, shows, nings like this projects and festivals, explained Kirsten Schrader, Cowichan’s A&C manager. On Nov. 27, she aims to ask the CVRD’s regional services committee to recommend the board create a formal A&C committee, and do a feasibility study about how best to establish an annual
Schrader
Peter W. Rusland
Jennie Stevens and other arts patrons peruse Polaroid photos by Gord Iverson (centre) at the Culture Through Portraiture station during the Oct. 23 launch of Cowichan Culture Speaks Easy in the Cowichan Theatre lobby. tax allocation to fund the arts. Schrader said she wants the committee struck, and the artstaxation study done, by next year. An arts budget from areas across Cowichan would see musical and drama groups, festival organizers and A&C project people apply for local grant funding. Money could go to a Shawnigan Players’ production or sets and costumes, the folk guild’s Islands Folk Festival, the Cowichan Music Festival, a show by fledgling thespians such as
Noisey Mime’s troupe, a public sculpture, a student art show, and much more. Applications would be approved through a peer-review committee, Schrader explained, stressing administration staff needed would be minimal. “There would be fine-arts requirements from each (applying) group,” she said of debating grant approvals, then examining the funded results. “If they don’t meet their requirements, obvious that would
be a problem for them getting grant money again,” Schrader said, stoked by response at the Oct. 23 Speaks Easy session. “If we have to go to referendum (for the CVRD taxation function), we need a lot more evenings like this.” Speaks Easy’s map holds balloons with red ones representing places in the valley’s past; blue signifies present sites; yellow shows future uses and ideas. Clicking on those balloons shows the Shawnigan Lake
Museum, Cowichan Station’s HUB centre, Shawnigan’s Art House Collective, Island Savings Centre, Aboriginal teachings in Chemainus’ Waterwheel Park, Ladysmith’s Waterfront Gallery, and even Youbou’s landmark bowling lanes. Don’t be shy, explained Speaks Easy point man Chris O’Connor — Cowichanians can always add their own arts and culture site picks to the active site owned by the CVRD. more on page A4 bchonda.com
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