The 25th annual Pacific Brant Carving and Art Show will be held at the Mary Winspear Centre in Sidney on Saturday and Sunday, April 11 and 12. Admission is $5 per person, with children 12 and under free. The show opens at 10 a.m. both days.
The main attraction at the show is the Brant Wildlife Woodcarving Competition. Wildlife carvers from across western Canada and the US compete for ribbons and cash awards. The Pacific Brant Carving and Art Show is one of the top carving shows in Canada and is featured annually in the national publication Wildfowl Carving and Collecting, a Fox Chapel publication from New York. The carving show first came to life in 1991 as the main event at the Brant Wildlife Festival held in the Parkville-Qualicum area. The show and competition relocated to Sidney in 2010. The show is organized by the Vancouver Island Woodcarvers Club (VIWC) and is a combined event of the Pacific Brant Carving Show, the Pacific Northwest Fish Carving Competition, the Pacific Brant Woodturning Show and the Pacific Brant Art and Photography Show.
The art and photography show features the work of the province’s top wildlife and nature artists, photographers and sculptors. They will have their work on display and for sale. The featured artist for 2015 is Terry Isaac, one of Canada’s best known wildlife painters. Terry is teaching a three day pre-show acrylic painting course at the Mary Winspear Centre at the beginning of the week.
The Pacific Brant Carving and Art Show has woodcarvers competing in four skill levels: Novice, Intermediate, Advanced and Expert in Wildlife, Non-wildlife, Fish and Woodturning events. Each skill level has numerous divisions and categories, so competitors compete at the same level of proficiency. Carvers advance through the four levels of competition by winning ribbons according to guidelines set down by the Pacific Northwest Carvers Advisory Council. All entries are judged by a panel of carvers, biologists and naturalists.
On Sunday afternoon, all cocktail carving entries will be auctioned off to the highest bidder. A cocktail carving cannot be any larger than four inches and are sought after by collectors. They are an inexpensive way to start your collection. As well, attendees will be able to bid on numerous items in the Silent Auction. On Saturday at 1 p.m. the decoy floating competition will be staged in the pool at the front of the hall. The show will also have free demonstrations in the hall during the show.
For more information: www.thebrant.ca or e-mail Dennis Drechsler, Show Chair, at ddrex@shaw.ca.
