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ARTS AROUND: Rollin Art Centre re-opens to the public

Alberni arts council will be holding a ‘mystery bag of books’ fundraiser
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Do you feel lucky this week? The Rollin Art Centre is selling mystery book bags in different genres as well as kids’ books as a mini fundraiser. (ALBERNI VALLEY NEWS PHOTO)

MELISSA MARTIN

SPECIAL TO THE NEWS

The Rollin Art Centre is now open to the public!

Our hours are Tuesday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. COVID-19 safety protocols will be followed, which means hand sanitizing, limited number of patrons, directional signage and no admittance without a face mask.

Stop by the gallery to view our current art exhibit, check out our gift shop or just come to say hello.

Please enter through the upstairs landing. It has been a long time, and we miss all our patrons. We are looking forward to seeing you all soon.

MYSTERY BAG OF BOOKS

Due to COVID-19, we did not have our annual giant book sale fundraiser in May. Now you can purchase a mystery bag of books and help out the Rollin Art Centre. You won’t know what is in the bag until you get it home—surprise!

For just $20 you will get 10 books, all in the same genre, and you will be helping Rollin Arts Centre during this difficult time.

The genres are fiction, romance, mystery, children’s chapter books (e.g. Nancy Drew), regular children’s books, biographies and variety bags (random genres).

This is an important fundraiser for us! You can purchase online through e-transfer at admincac@shawcable.com. Please be sure to include your name and contact info. Or pay by cheque/exact cash when you pick up at the Rollin Art Centre. Please call 250 724-3412 to arrange for pick up. Only 20 bags are available currently – get yours now!

Your support for the Rollin Art Centre is greatly needed and much appreciated.

MINI BOOK SALE

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Rollin Art Centre has had to postpone its biggest fundraiser. So we have decided to hold a mini book sale and combine it with an artisan market.

This event will be held on the grounds of Rollin Centre on Saturday, Aug. 8 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. A large selection of great quality bargain books, children’s books and puzzles will be available, plus several local artisans with their displays of jewelry, pottery, wood and more.

The public’s support for Rollin Arts Centre is greatly needed and much appreciated! Please note that we will collect names and telephone numbers of those attending, in the event that contact tracing becomes necessary. We require social distancing, face masks and the use of hand sanitizer upon entry and exit to this event.

The Rollin Art Centre is located at the corner of Eighth Avenue and Argyle Street.

TOGETHER

The newest art exhibit at the Rollin Art Centre features five local artists, who collaborated over the past few months to create a truly spectacular show. Check out www.alberniarts.com to see the collaborative talents of Cecil Dawson, Allen Halverson, Nigel Atkin, Lori Shone-Kusmin and Jennifer Taylor.

This exciting exhibit touches upon significant social issues and features First Nations paintings, surfboard designs, carved river otters, drawings, cedar paddles and so much more.

DRAWING I

The next children’s art workshop will be Drawing I from July 21-24 at the Rollin Art Centre. Art workshops are for Children aged 9-11 and take place every Tuesday-Friday from 10 a.m. to noon. These four-day workshops are filling up, as space is very limited. Each week will be a different medium.

Register today by emailing admincac@shawcable.com or call 250-724-3412.

WRITING WORKSHOPS

Every Monday morning (10 a.m. to noon), the Rollin Art Centre will be holding writing camp for ages 10-12 with a different genre each week. July 20 is Fantasy and Sci-Fi, July 27 will be Historical Fiction, August 10 will be Mysteries and August 17 will feature Movies and Theatre.

All writing workshops will be held outside, to follow social distancing guidelines. Each week’s workshop costs $12. Only five children will be allowed to register per week, so register today by emailing admincac@shawcable.com.

GIFT SHOP NOW ONLINE

Available now, you can view all of the Rollin Art Centre’s gift shop items from the comfort of your own home.

The Rollin Art Centre is excited to bring all our one-of-a kind art pieces from our gift shop to you online at www.alberniarts.com. We have a wide range of items, all created by local artists, including pottery, wood works, jewellery, stained glass, sun catchers, prints, painting, art cards, First Nations artwork, glass etchings, birdhouses and so much more.

When you purchase from our gift shop or make a donation, you are helping to support local artists as well as the Rollin Art Centre. We need your continued support.

ANNUAL BOOK SALE

The news is out – we have a new venue for this year’s annual giant book sale!

We need your help, especially this year, to raise funds. Mark your calendars for Friday, Nov. 6 (6-8 p.m.) and Saturday, Nov. 7 (9 a.m. to 3 p.m.) when the Community Arts Council will be holding its biggest fundraiser of the year at the Alberni Athletic Hall.

This year promises to be the best year yet, with thousands of wonderful books and space to spread out for more selections.

Due to all the generous amount of book donations, we will no longer be accepting book donations for this year’s book sale. Please keep them until 2021. Thank you again for your continued support.

ROTARY MURAL PROJECT

The Port Alberni Arrowsmith Rotary Club and community partners are building relationships, brick by brick.

The club is fundraising for a community mural project through the sale of bricks that make up the backside of the Canadian Alberni Engineering Building on Bird Street (the back wall across from the Train Station). The bricks can be purchased through e-transfer (arrowsmithrotaryclub@gmail.com) or by cash or cheque to the Arrowsmith Rotary Club. Check out the club’s Facebook page for more information or call Terry Deakin at 250-720-6604.

CHAR’S PRESENTS ZOOM

Wednesday, July 29, 7 p.m. (virtual doors 6:30 p.m.) — Alberni Valley Words on Fire Spoken Word Open Mic featuring: Ian Cognito and Daniel Smith. Please email AVWordsOnFire@gmail.com to pre-register for the open mic list.

Melissa Martin is the Arts Administrator for the Community Arts Council, at the Rollin Art Centre and writes for the Alberni Valley News. Call 250-724-3412. Email: communityarts@shaw.ca.