Northern Manitoba’s longest-running regional art show was cancelled this spring, but a replacement show in Flin Flon will fill the void.
This year’s edition of the Northern Juried Art Show, which was set to be held in Thompson last month, was cancelled due to lack of entries.
A statement released by the event’s organizing committee said the entry deadline was extended, but a minimum number of entries was not reached.
“The main reason for [the cancellation] is lack of artist participation in the last few years. It has reached a point where it is not viable to hold the show this year; we only hope that next year it can continue with renewed interest of the artists north of the 53rd [parallel],” wrote committee president Leigh Hall in a press release last month.
The Flin Flon event, tentatively called the Northern Juried Art Exhibition, will be held at the NorVA Centre during the Trout Festival, from June 27 to July 1.
Last year, 77 artists and 175 original paintings, sculptures, sketches and other pieces were entered. Ahead of this year’s event, that number dwindled to around 50 pieces and 21 artists, most of whom hail from the Flin Flon area.
“Thirteen are from this area. They had very few entries from Thompson – they had only six,” said Elly Spencer, an organizer of the Flin Flon exhibition.
Spencer added that artists from Gillam and Thompson would also take part.
“We have about the same number of artists from Flin Flon as we always do.”
Spencer said no one really knows for certain why fewer people entered the now-cancelled show, but Flin Flon has often served as a leader for the regional art scene.
“We really have stepped up to the plate quite often. I see this as another way of us doing that,” she said.
In addition to serving as a new exhibition for northern art, the Flin Flon event will allow skilled artists a chance at provincial recognition. Much like the traditional Northern Juried Art Show, 10 entries will be picked by a selection of jurors – likely other north-based artists – to earn a spot in a provincial showing in Winnipeg for rural and northern artists.
“By having the show here, we can in fact send the 10 pieces to the rural and northern show,” said Spencer.
“I think it’s really important that northern artists and Flin Flon artists have the chance to have their work shown in the city.”
It is likely that most of the event’s jurors and judges will be from the Flin Flon area. NorVA executive director Mike Spencer was already scheduled to be a juror for the now-cancelled Thompson show.
“That way we don’t have to pay for transportation, we don’t have to pay for food, we don’t pay for anything like that. We just have to have them judge the show,” said Spencer.
