Learn about the lives — and final resting place — of some of Victoria’s pioneer families at a cemetery tour at the St. Mary the Virgin Church, Metchosin, on Sunday, Aug. 25.
Several tours will be conducted by Andrew Spray at St. Mary the Virgin, one of the oldest churches on Vancouver Island, with the foundation stone laid in 1873 and the churchyard consecrated in 1876.
The congregation moved to a new church, St. Mary of the Incarnation, in 1991. The original church has been designated a historical building by the District of Metchosin and continues to be used for special services, as well as for weddings, funerals and other special occasions.
The cemetery contains many graves of pioneers of the Metchosin, Colwood and Langford areas.
On display will be a world map depicting the early settler routes used to get to Vancouver Island. Aside from the pioneers researched for the Pioneer Map Booklet, these maps will outline where well-known Metchosin community elders arrived from.
Music will be provided by Allison Marshall and her students, and refreshments will be served in the Parish Hall.
The grounds of the church are also well-known for their spectacular display of fawn lilies and camas in the spring. Visitors can purchase fawn lily and camas seeds collected from plants, as well as copies of the 150th Pioneer Map Booklet, which was produced in 2017 by the Heritage Committee.
The cemetery tour runs noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 25. at St. Mary the Virgin Church Cemetery, 4354 Metchosin Rd. For more information, contact Gaert Linnaea at linnaea1@telus.net.
Artist to be featured in mural project
Open Space has chosen local artist Andréa Searle as the featured artist for the MAKE/SPACE Mural Project, to be located in Helmcken Alley in downtown Victoria.
Searle is a queer Afro-latinx/Ojibwe artist and a practicing tattoo artist who strives to provide a safe space for the LGBTQ+ and person of colour communities to adorn themselves.
Searle’s proposal captured the attention of the jury with bright colour, bold design and a deeply integrated sense of locality and perspective.
The work is inspired by the abstract themes of Dadaism, the bold colours of Michoacana folk art, and the symbolism of Latin American Catholic iconography.
According to Searle, the mural will be a reclaimed safe space.
“A visible reminder to refuel our energy through community bonds, through our ancestral ties, and through sharing and illustrating our stories,” Searle said.
Primary Example, the existing mural, was painted over last week.
Searle’s installation process will take place over the following weeks, with an outdoor celebration to launch the mural taking place on Sept. 1.
Open Space will update progress on the painting and Searle’s artistic process on its social media account.
The project was made possible with by a City of Victoria, My Great Neighbourhood Grant.
For more information, go to openspace.ca/make-space.
Victoria artist selected for outdoor art gallery
Artwork by Fern Long has been chosen to be featured in the Commercial Alley Outdoor Art Gallery until August 2020.
Located on the west wall of the Youth Empowerment Society building on the 500-block of Yates Street, the gallery showcases public art installations by local artists to add colour and vitality to the area.
The arts initiative was launched by the City of Victoria in 2014, with an installation by Other (a.k.a. Troy Lovegates). Subsequent artists have included Roy Green, Liz P. Dempsey, Daniel Ellingsen, Kai Choufour and, most recently, Austin Clay Willis.
Long’s Home is the theme of original artwork in the outdoor art gallery’s seventh installation.
Long’s proposal was one of 19 submissions the City of Victoria received this year in response to a juried Call to Artists for emerging artists and artist teams.
Her proposal, a four-panel 1.2-metre-by-2.4-metre artwork, explores the idea of home by using house-shaped cuts in layers of paint and collaged imagery.
Long is a Victoria-based contemporary artist, a member of the BOXCARSIX artist collective and a graduate from the Vancouver Island School of Art.
Through painting, drawing and sculpture, she builds structures that explore the spaces we inhabit and move through physically and emotionally.
For more information, go to victoria.ca/publicart.
Church tour highlights historic women
Learn more about a British heiress who financed churches and bride ships (and scandalized Victorian society at the same time) at Harp and Angels, a special tour, tea and music program, Wednesday at Christ Church Cathedral.
At Harp and Angels: Women in the Church you will hear about some of the church’s real-life angels — historic women that included philanthropists and noteworthy artists.
During the guided tour, you will see works by a pioneering stained-glass artist and a sculptor, who were both leading figures in their fields.
Participants get to view the depictions of women in the cathedral’s stained-glass collection including a modern interpretation of the Virgin Mary in stained glass.
After the tour, you can relax and enjoy an old-fashioned church tea while listening to music by Victoria harpist Gwyneth Evans.
Tickets are $15. The event runs 2:30 to 4 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 21 at Christ Church Cathedral, 930 Burdett Ave. Tickets available through Eventbrite or the cathedral office at 250-383-2714. More information can be found here.
Free film screening to be sensory-sensitive
Rotary Victoria Harbourside and Imax Victoria have pitched in to offer youth with autism and other neurobehavioral conditions, and their families, a free, private sensory-sensitive screening of the new Superpower Dogs film, Aug. 24 at Imax Victoria.
A trip to the theatre can be a stressful time for individuals with sensory sensitivities — if not impossible.
Films played at sensory-sensitive screenings feature a reduced volume, with dim lighting kept on throughout the film.
Unlike a regular show, moviegoers at a sensory-sensitive screening are allowed to move freely throughout the auditorium during the presentation. At the special screening, people can interact with the presentation by talking, singing or even dancing.
The audience could be particularly inspired by Ricochet, one of the canines in Superpower Dogs. She is a therapy dog who works with youth with autism and veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder. Ricochet, and therapy dogs like her, sense the emotions of humans, and help them stay calm, build confidence and conquer their fears.
Vancouver Island K9 Consulting will be on site with service dogs in training who are destined to work alongside humans who require support to assist them in living independently.
Lt.-Gov. Janet Austin will also be in attendance. At her side will be Vice-Regal Canine Consort MacDuff Austin-Chester, a charming and confident West Highland white terrier.
Organizers are offering free family tickets (maximum of four) to the event. Pre-registration is required. Doors open at 8:15, the movie starts at 8:45 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 24 at Imax Victoria, in the Royal B.C. Museum, 675 Belleville St. For more information, go to harboursiderotary.org/page/superpower-dogs.
Harbourside Rotary is continuing to look for the support of sponsors, with a goal to raise $5,000 to support EPIC Service Dog Society, who fund service-dog training and match dogs to their humans.
For more information, go to harboursiderotary.org.
Pianos can be yours, if you move them
The Victoria Conservatory of Music is giving away two free pianos — all you have to do is pay for their move.
They have both a Gerhard Heintzman Upright Grand, ca. 1895, and a Willis upright grand looking for a good home.
Both are offered free, but whoever wishes to have one or these pianos will have to arrange to transport the instrument(s).
Anyone interested in seeing the pianos can contact dean@vcm.bc.ca.
Tour de Rock fundraiser cancelled
A fundraiser for the Canadian Cancer Society Cops for Cancer Tour de Rock scheduled for Aug. 29 at the Penny Farthing Public House has been cancelled.
The Tour de Rock is a fundraising event that raises money for pediatric cancer research and support programs for children with a history of cancer. The tour takes place Sept. 21 to Oct. 4.
The event was to support Const. Sandrine Perry, an Oak Bay police officer who is part of the team.
For more information on the Tour de Rock, go to tourderock.ca.
