Burnaby residents are invited to get arty in celebration of Family Day.
The City of Burnaby is offering a host of activities over Family Day weekend, and arts happenings are among them.
On Saturday, Feb. 7, you can take part in a free Art on the Spot session at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts (6450 Deer Lake Ave.) Instructor Marianne Otterstrom will be on hand to lead an art activity where family members can draw portraits of each other. It's open to all ages, kids and adults, and runs from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the atrium.
On Sunday, Feb. 8, there's a free In the BAG studio session at the Burnaby Art Gallery (6344 Deer Lake Ave.). Families can drop in between 1 and 4 p.m. to take part in an interactive experience combining the current exhibition - Visualizing a Culture for Strangers: Chinese Export Paintings of the Nineteenth Century - with a hands-on studio session led by Shelley Tucker.
Family Day itself - Monday, Feb. 9 - features activities all day at a variety of city facilities.
For the small folks, there's a Teeny Valentine's Special at Bonsor Recreation Complex (6550 Bonsor Ave.), where kids aged 1.5 to 5, with their caregiver, can create Valentine's Day crafts and treats. It runs twice - from 10 a.m. to noon and from 12:30 to 2 p.m.
There's also a Family Clay City at Bonsor, running from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for kids of all ages, with adult. Parents and kids can drop by to help build a temporary landscape out of clay - creating houses, caves, roads, animals, trees and more. It's free.
Or, if you prefer art of the edible sort, you can sign up for Family Cupcake Creation, for six- to 12-year-olds with caregiver. It runs twice, from 1 to 2:30 p.m. or from 3 to 4:30 p.m., both at Bonsor. It's six per child and $13 per adult (and everyone brings home treats).
And, of course, there's always fun at the Burnaby Village Museum, which is offering Family Day at the Carousel for those aged one and up, with adult. There will be a children's entertainer, art activities, heritage games and unlimited carousel rides all included. It's happening at the Carousel Pavilion, and it costs $6.50 per person.
Check out www.burnaby.ca/familyday for all the details and to sign up for any of the programs.
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If you read this paper regularly, you'll have already seen information about the new exhibition at Burnaby Art Gallery.
Visualizing a Culture for Strangers: Chinese Export Paintings of the Nineteenth Century is an exhibition on tour from the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, and it's on in Burnaby from Jan. 30 to March 29.
It features work created in the city of Guangzhou (Canton), China in the 19th century specifically for export to the western market - blending western techniques and references in with scenes of Chinese landscape, culture and customs.
The gallery has a number of educational programs being offered in connection with the exhibition.
Among them:
* Gallery tour and workshop for homelearners: On Wednesday, Feb. 18, from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m., homeschooled kids in grades 2 to 3 are invited to take part in an exploration of the artwork through conversation and interactive activities, then to create art in the studio. It's suitable for six- to 14-year-olds and costs $16.
* Watercolour in detail: This workshop for ages 16 and up, led by Betty Woo, runs Saturday, Feb. 28 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m Participants will explore basic watercolour painting techniques and processes, learning paper preparation, washes, glazes and application of fine detail. Supplies and lunch are included, and it costs $61.55.
* Full-day art studio for homelearners: On Wednesday, March 6, from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., homeschooled students aged nine to 17 can take part in a full-day immersion in visual arts. Students can develop a mini-portfolio inspired by the ongoing exhibition, geared at grades 5 to 12. There will be printing, collaging and watercolour work in studio. It costs $38.
* Drypoint Etching: On Saturday, March 14, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., there's a workshop for artists aged 16 and up. Participants will learn how to create detailed drypoint prints, including creating a range of tones, inking, wiping and printing the plate on the press. Aupplies and lunch are included, and it costs $61.55.
Burnaby Art Gallery is at 6344 Deer Lake Ave. Call 604-297-4422 or see www.burnabyartgallery.ca for more information.
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Is there a teenage reader in your household?
The Burnaby Public Library is once again offering its Teen Winter Readers' Review, a contest for teens in grades 8 through 12.
You can call on any library branch to register and pick up a review package. For every book you read, you can submit a review and be entered to win book prizes, as well as the grand prize of a $75 Metropolis at Metrotown gift certificate. Select reviews will also be posted at the end of the contest.
It's open until March 1. Check out www.bpl.bc.ca/teens to find out more about this and other teen programs.
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This may seem like an early heads-up, but it's not too soon to start thinking about spring break.
For local parents looking for fun activities for the kids, look no farther than the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts.
The centre is once again offering a host of arty options for spring break for all ages, from three- and four-year-olds through the teens.
During the first week of spring break (March 9 to 13), three-, four- and five-year-olds can check out Creative Dance for Parent and Child, while four- to six-year-olds can try out Creative Drama. For seven- to nine-year-olds, there's Drama Adventures, and seven- to 12-year-olds can try out Making Stories. For the tweens (nine to 12), there's also a digital filmmaking camp that runs all day Monday to Friday. Teens aged 13 to 18 can take part in a Just for Writers course that runs 1 to 3 p.m. daily.
There's also a week-long Shadbolt Arts Jam, a multidisciplinary art camp that immerses kids in dance, music appreciation, drama, drawing and painting, with a demo on the final day. It's offered for six- to eight-year-olds and for nine- to 12-year-olds, and there's after-camp fun care for those families who need it.
In the second week (March 16 to 20), kids aged seven to 12 can try out the Shadbolt Circus Camp daily from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and once again there's after-camp fun care for those who require it.
Check out www.shadboltcentre.com or call 604-291-6864 for information about any of the above options.
Do you have an item for Lively City? Send arts and entertainment ideas to Julie, [email protected]. You can also find her on Twitter, @juliemaclellan.
