The town of Squamish is holding its third annual Art Walk on September 18th and 19th, and the group planning this year's event has been working since the spring in preparation. On a sunny day in early June, I sit chatting with them in a local sandwich shop. The paninis are delicious, as good as any I have eaten, and conversation takes a back seat for a few minutes while we clean our plates. I had met them an hour earlier at the Squamish library where they had been hanging a new show in the Foyer Gallery. From the way that they coordinated their movements, scaling a ladder to hang several large screened and painted tapestries, passing up hammers, offering suggestions, providing feedback, it was obvious they were familiar with both each other and the architectural peculiarities of the space.

The Foyer Gallery opened in October 1997, as an extension of the Squamish Public Library. From its inception it has been guided and directed by the volunteer efforts of artist Fran Solar, who moved to Squamish fourteen years ago from Ontario. It was the scenery and the hiking opportunities that attracted her to the area, and there is no disputing that Howe Sound is a truly spectacular place to live. Perhaps because of the natural beauty of the surroundings, there are many artists like Fran who have settled here. The Foyer Gallery presents a new show every month, curated by Fran and assisted by Micheline Brien-Bell and Jane Runnals, my lunch companions. With pride, they confirm that the space is booked well into 2005. Fran explains that a show at the Foyer Gallery can be a lucrative venture for an artist, and several have enjoyed sell-out situations. (Although the Gallery takes no commission, artists contribute 20% of their sales to the library).

It is partly for financial reasons that the women I am enjoying lunch with have opted to organize this year's Art Walk. As Jane Runnals explains, she was motivated by the success of Arts in the Wild, the summer festival of the arts that attracts thousands of visitors each year to artists' studios in Ontario cottage country. She feels that there is no reason why the Howe Sound area and particularly the Squamish Valley, should not be able to create an equally vibrant event. Three years ago, a group of Squamish artists applied for funding from the Western Economic Diversification Fund, and with the initial grant, the Squamish Valley Art Walk was born. The women coordinating this year's weekend are hopeful that they will be able to make the project self-sustaining. Participating artists each pay $100, which ensures that their studios will be pin-pointed on the Art Walk map, and that they will get advertising space in a brochure that will be placed in prominent tourist friendly locations such as the ferries and provincial and municipal information centres. Micheline Brien-Bell assures me that past walks have proven profitable for participating artists, despite the fact that little or no effort was made to promote the event outside of Squamish. This year, the women hope that with the advance publicity and a broader advertising sweep, even more people will come. The Art Walk is on September 18th and 19th. Studios are open 11am to 5pm. For details visit www.squamishart.com, call Micheline Brien-Bell at 604-898-4493 or Fran Solar at 604-898-4377, or email info@squamishart.com

Contributed by Aubin van Berckel
aubin@opusframing.com