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The Better Living and Visual Arts Show takes place Friday and Saturday in the Cypress Centre auditorium. (Photo Courtesy Derek Brade)
Better Living and Visual Arts

Visual Arts show gives exposure to local talent

Jul 29, 2021 | 4:44 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – The Better Living and Visual Arts Show is one of the few Stampede traditions that is taking place this week.

But there are still changes to it.

Usually a juried event with an entry fee for the artists, this year it’s free and more of a community show and sale event.

The entire event was cancelled last year so holding one this year was important to organizers.

“The artists need the exposure,” says visual arts chair Leslie Mayer.

Paintings, photography, fibre arts and more will be on display and for sale at the show.

Artist Michele Winger says the city boasts a spectacular art community.

“It’s been known for a long time that Medicine Hat has a very impressive artist base,” she says. “The amount of talent we have in this city is really quite something. So we have a lot of well-known names like Gina LaCoste, Debbie Kammerer, Evelyn Kleis, Marian Ho, June Burns.”

Winger, who shows her art on Facebook and Instagram, says she’s so impressed by the others that almost embarrassed to be showing her art alongside them. The artists will be in attendance at the show.

“So it will give the people the opportunity to interact with us and ask about our techniques and how it is that we arrived at our pieces of art,” she says.

Mayer says there are about 25 local artists in the show and it’s all original artwork.

Another change this year is that people can purchase art and take it home right away. Under the juried shows, purchasers had to wait until the show was over before they could take their new piece of art.

The Better Living and Visual Arts show is open 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Friday and 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday.