July 2019 Newsletter

July 2019
Contact Information:

Secretary   victoriasketchclub@gmail.com

VSC website   www.victoriasketchclub.ca 

Facebook  
 https://www.facebook.com/victoriasketchclub/
Last call!
Are you booked in to this year's Paint Out
(Sept 8-15)?
If not, book NOW at
THE OCEAN FRONT SUITES IN COWICHAN BAY.
Toll Free: 1-800-663-7898
Scenes from July's plein air sessions 
Brentwood Bay, July 2nd
Brentwood Bay is part of the Central Saanich Municipality, one of 13 that make up the Greater Victoria area, and is normally a favourite sketching spot for the club. Alas, this particular day was mucky and rainy for the first plein air of July-- but in our heart of hearts, we were all thrilled for the moisture!
A few hearty souls braved the elements long enough to get this picture ...
then sought shelter at the Brentwood Bay Resort & Spa for lunch
Saxe Point Park, July 9th
It was a perfect day at Saxe Point Park in Esquimalt, and about a dozen VSC members made it out to enjoy the scenery.
The name Saxe is part of the title of HRH Queen Victoria's husband and consort, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. Saxe Point was designated as park land in 1934, and during the Second World War, a considerable swath of trees on the 7.5 hectare site were cleared, and a searchlight was installed as part of the Department of National Defense's shoreline defense. The park provides wonderful views of the Olympic Mountains and Strait of Juan de Fuca.
 
Beaver / Elk Lake, July 16th
The Elk/Beaver Regional Park is a 1,072 acres park in Saanich containing Elk Lake and Beaver Lake. In the '30s and '40s, Elk/Beaver Lake was known as the "Freshwater Playground of Victoria." With the completion of the Pat Bay highway in the 1950s, measures were taken to start restoring the park to its natural state. In 1966, Elk/Beaver Lake became a regional park and is managed by the Capital Regional District.
Oak Bay Marina / Queen’s Park / Haynes Park, July 23rd
The Oak Bay breakwater was built in 1959, funded by the federal government. In 1962, the Oak Bay Marina was built by Bob Wright on Turkey Head Point near Mary Tod Island, and officially opened in April, 1964. The new marina replaced the Oak Bay Boat House built in 1893.
The marina was home to the Pacific Undersea Gardens which opened in 1964 and later relocated to Victoria's inner harbour in 1969, where it operated until its closure in 2013. It was also home to Sealand of the Pacific which opened in 1969. The aquarium was populated by several orcas that were captured locally. Conditions for both whales and staff at the marina were widely criticized, and, succumbing to public pressure, Sealand closed in November 1992. Victoria Sketch Club members are lucky to have easy access to this beautiful plein air location. 
Long-time VSC member Joan Eldridge and her daughter painting at Turkey Head.
The “The Hunt” at Queens' Park, Oak Bay, is part of a permanent installation by metal sculptor Ken Hall, featuring a wolf pack.
Michell’s Farm / Heritage Acres / Island View Beach, July 30th
Michell's Farm was originally established in the 1860s by Bill Michell, who purchased a 100-acre farm on the Saanich Peninsula with money made during the goldrush. It started out growing mainly potatoes, but the 1980s discovery of golden nematode, which resulted in a ban on potato-growing, prompted the Michells to experiment with other vegetables. Today, it's 400+ acres, and is still owned and operated by the sixth generation Michell family members.
HISTORY CORNER
Over the years the club has enjoyed the gardens of Port Ellice House as a painting venue, the Italianate villa-style home built for the O’Reilly family in 1862. Peter O’Reilly was a distinguished public servant, at various times Chief Gold and Indian Reserve Commissioner. The Vancouver Island Local History Society recently took over the running of the site as a museum, and it has been closed to the public while renovations are undertaken. Kathleen O’Reilly, the daughter and later mistress of the household, was a charter member of the Victoria Sketch Club, although her considerable talent as a watercolourist was never fully realized due to the diversity of her occupation in other artistic, social, church and recreational sport activities. A recognized local beauty, Kathleen attracted various suitors and enjoyed  the company of Robert Falcon Scott, then a Royal Naval Officer stationed at Esquimalt and later to die in a failed attempt to reach the South Pole in 1912. Surprisingly, she remained unmarried up to her death in 1945, and there are some ghostly stories concerning her re-visiting the house in which she spent her entire life.     
John Lover, VSC Historian
UPCOMING CLUB EVENTS
Tentative plein air summer program 2019
by Peter Marcetta
Summer venues 2019
Aug 8        Bonny Myer’s Garden
Aug 13      Sea Cidery (new)
Aug 20      Oak Bay Village* and lunch

Watch your email for directions in the week leading up to the date.
*indicates return visit requested by more than 50% of last year's participants.
THANK YOU, PETER, FOR ORGANIZING THIS PROGRAM!!
What's New?

The current state of affairs at GNS

Pictures provided by Peter & Shirley Marcetta 
The former site of 45 VSC annual art shows reaching back to 1974 is now history...
What's New with VSC Members
UVIc Scholarship honors VSC member Avis Rasmussen

On her 82nd birthday, VSC member Avis Rasmussen received a surprise gift: an endowed UVic scholarship in her name. “I still can’t believe it,” she says. ”It means so much to be able to help our students for years to come.” The award will be given to a mature graduate student studying visual arts with a focus on painting, drawing or printmaking.

Avis taught art for many years and it became her life‘s work. "It will always have a special place in my heart," she says. "This award has allowed me to create a legacy of helping other artist pursue their dreams. There’s no better feeling than that.”

Congratulations, Avis!
If you have news you'd like to share, please forward it to the newsletter editor at val@vallawton.com
Artists-in-Residence
VSC member Maureen Ness will be the Artist in Residence for August 2019 at Delta Marriott Hotel, at 100 Harbour Road. This is her third year at the hotel's residency program. Come and see her in action during the month of August, Monday through Saturday, 10 am - 5 pm.
VSC member Anne Bowen will be artist in residence at the Coast Hotel for the month of August.
If you're an Artist in Residence, please send your details to val@vallawton.com

Some fun stuff

If you find some fun art-related videos you'd like to share with the club, please send them along to newsletter editor val@vallawton.com.
Thanks for this one, Nirmala!

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