For almost a century Victoria Sketch Club artists have gathered weekly to paint and sketch, either outdoors from local scenes or indoors from live models or still life.

Its story began in 1909, when a little band of enthusiasts decided to form an arts society. The upshot was the Island Arts Club, comprising 56 Charter Members, including the likes of Samuel Maclure, Emily Carr and the Crease and Pemberton families.

The Island Arts and Crafts Society, as it became known dominated the local art scene throughout the inter-War period. Its leading artists included Max Maynard, Jack Shadbolt and Ina Uhthoff; its charter listed such aims as the establishment of a school, an art gallery and libraries. The first annual exhibition in 1910 attracted 152 entries.

From the outset, the Society chose to stimulate art expression through its "Sketch Club" in which art lovers could meet kindred spirits to draw from local scenes. A summer program for outdoor work was devised; in the winter months drawing skills were honed with models and still-life. The Sketch Club was an official component of the Society, and on Tuesday afternoons its members could be found sketching on Mount Tolmie or amongst the camas, buttercups and oak trees in Uplands.

Although the Society was the largest in Canada by 1935, its energies diminished during and immediately following World War II. By 1951, it was clear that it was dormant and had outlived many of its original purposes. But its Sketch Club component still met regularly. In 1952, as an acceptance of reality, the Island Arts and Craft Society became known as The Sketch Club. Officially, the Club adopted the name of Victoria Sketch Club, so dubbed by Colin Graham, curator of the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria.

Having risen like a phoenix from the ashes of its parent body, the Sketch Club demonstrated its quality through the work of such artists as Rosa Willis, Lillian Sweeney, Isobel Hobbes, Gertrude Snider and Alice Carey. It adopted a format clearly recognizable today, with an annual residential paint-out added to the well established annual exhibition and indoor winter and outdoor summer programs.

As the oldest art group west of Ontario, the Club takes pride in its history, and welcomes new members both to maintain its traditions and bring in new energy, ideas and artistic styles. Notable additions in recent years have included John Climer, an established name in Canadian art, and Ted Harrison, whose unique vision and portrayal of northern Canadian life has received international acclaim.

In 2005, the Sketch Club proudly celebrates a record of unbroken activity covering ninety-six years. Its objects remain to foster the practice of painting and drawing of its members, and to contribute to the variety and richness of the local art scene. Club members continue to put on exhibitions either collectively or on a group basis, exhibit with such organizations as the Federation of Canadian Artists and participate in many community events.

For more information contact the president of the Victoria Sketch Club Barbara Lover at 604-658-2409 or email jblover@shaw.ca

Special feature by guest contributor, John Lover.