This October, the Armstrong Spallumcheen Museum & Art Gallery presents ‘Where Did You Get That Idea?’, a major group exhibition by ScholarswithoutInstitutions, running from Thursday, Oct. 1 to Saturday, Oct. 24. The exhibition features six professional artists from the Shuswap and Kamloops area and will fill both galleries.
ScholarswithoutInstitutions is an established collective that developed an alternative learning model. Rather than pursuing conventional advanced art education, the artists select their own instructors and topics of study, engaging with lectures, readings, and discussion as part of an ongoing, self-directed program. Their research has explored questions of “place” through multiple lenses, including philosophy, botany, cultural geography, spirituality, civic life, and environmental advocacy.
The exhibition asks: How are we shaped by the places we live, and how, in turn, do we shape those places? From this shared inquiry, each artist has developed a distinct body of work, reflecting six highly individual creative paths grounded in a common research question.
Making art is research for artists; engaging with research informs our art
Artists: Linda Franklin Maureen Light Susan Miller Lyn Richards Carol Schlosar Elizabeth Sigalet
A public opening reception will be held on Thursday, Oct. 1 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. The public is invited to attend and meet the artists. Admission is free.
There will also be a live ‘Salon’ with the artists, October 3rd, from 1-3 PM, which gives an opportunity to discuss their experience in exploration and artistic-based learning.
The Armstrong Spallumcheen Museum & Art Gallery is located at 3415 Pleasant Valley Road in Armstrong. Gallery hours are Tuesday to Saturday, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. More information is available at www.armstrongspallmuseumart.com.
In the early 1970’s residents of Armstrong found themselves powerless to save an historic building from being demolished. This event was the spark that led to the creation of the Armstrong Spallumcheen Historical Society, incorporated in 1974. In the beginning, the Society’s collection consisted mainly of historical photographs. Almost a decade later the City of Armstrong offered the Society space in part of a machine storage building. The Society opened a museum to the public in 1983. In 1988, with the help of a gift from Rusty Freeze, they expanded into the rest of the building and added an Art Gallery. At this time the name of the Society changed to the Armstrong Spallumcheen Museum and Arts Society. The museum and art gallery are the result of the dedication of the many volunteers from the community who continue to be active in it’s operation.
THE Armstrong Spallumcheen Museum and Art Gallery is located in historic downtown Armstrong. The first building on this site was moved from Lansdowne in 1901. Over time he expanded the building. The business was later operated by his sons and gradually changed into a machine shop. It has also served as a storage facility, automobile garage and gas station. Since becoming a museum, the facility has been upgraded many times, Our renovations in 2011 included fresh paint, new signage, a timber frame entrance and a colonnade. We now have a brand new, but still historic, look for a favourite old building.