Peachland Arts Newsletter - March 30, 2026
Monday, March 30, 2026
Dear readers:
Almost into April, but, since the next newsletter will not be sent on April 1st, you’ll be spared any April Fool's jokes that shocked some readers when they read one of my past newsletters alluding the Peachland Art Gallery was on its last legs and about to close. Well, despite the joke, some believed it (one even asked to be dropped from the mailing list), but of course, the Gallery is still thriving!
This is the last week of the very popular exhibition of photographic art, the12th Annual Captured Images Exhibition, which closes on Sunday, April 5, and, if you’ve not seen it, now is the time to do so, after perhaps looking at the slideshow by clicking on the above link. The next exhibition, which opens on Saturday, April 11, will be a combined one, “Beautiful Together” and “Echoes of Place,” featuring local artists Paula Charter, Kel Taylor, and Jenny Lewis, who, in partnership, explore landscapes and transformational memories. More will be mentioned with a poster in the next newsletter.
The Talent Showcase in Our SPACE last Thursday evening was a varied musical evening that included piano, guitar, and vocal, with ages ranging from emcee Paula McLauglin’s 12-year-old student Salem Nixon’s first public performance to Mayor van Minsel singing two solos from Neil Diamond and Abba! Quan Wen also helped set the spring mood with some evocative piano solos, and three other males on guitar sang some great classics in country, folk, and blues. Zion Nixon and Macaulay O'Gorman followed with their best piano yet, to everyone's delight! The concert ended with Hong Nguyen on guitar and her brother, Van Jr., who sang two pop duets and showed off his excellent whistling skills! Every Talent Showcase has new, varied talent and its reputation is spreading - this night they were almost out of chairs with an audience capacity reaching 60. It is suggested that those planning to attend do soonline in advance. Of course, tickets are also available at the door.
Many of you, as artists who rely on our forests for subject matter (especially who paint en plein air), should be aware that snowmelt from the hills above Peachland provides all the water for wildlife, for agriculture and the town’s drinking water. This area, our watershed, is currently experiencing environmental threats that endanger its collapse. It is our responsibility to protect and secure this water source! This area is our watershed. It is facing multiple threats and is at serious risk of collapse. A protected watershed with a secure water source is the goal ofThe Peachland Watershed Protection Alliance, who seek your help to ensure that our surrounding woodland remains healthy and protected from logging companies that want to log many of the last certified old-growth trees in the Okanagan yet to be clear-cut. Our Watershed Needs Your Help toSave Glen Lake!
Now showing, in the Thomas A. Budd Gallery of the Kelowna Art Gallery until June 21, is the40th Annual Student Art Exhibition: Kaleidoscope, featuring the works of young artists in Grades 9 to 12 from across schools in the Central Okanagan who were invited to participate in the 40th Annual Art in Action student exhibition. The word kaleidoscope implies that a constant shift in position or perspective can alter one’s impression or understanding of what one usually perceives, an entire recolouring of the norm.
A team from Opus Art Supplies in Kelowna are currently showcasing their talents in an exhibit,The Artists Behind Opus Art Supplies, on the first floor hallway of the Rotary Centre for the Arts in Kelowna. Every artist must spend time perfecting their craft. The sun rises early when Dylan Grai Baker adds his final acrylic brushstroke to a surrealist painting, while Brandon awakes early, inspired by whatever the morning offers. Katie Jane Poetsch follows a whimsical path while Leah de Gooijer explores flora and fauna art using watercolour. Sight and sound guide others. Paige Boger’s work is precise,”tattoo worthy“; Mar Leskosek’s “lets the familiarity of a Studio Ghibli film carry her through her cinema-esque vignettes ..... Ryan Bui’s acrylics are alluring and Jesse Roode‘s draw the viewer into a quiet, calm space.”
The Okanagan Symphony Orchestra under the baton of conductor Julian Pellicano will be presentingSURPRISE!featuring Heather Beaty on flute playing C.P.E. Bach’s Flute Concerto in D Minor at their Kelowna Community Theatre concert on Friday, April 10 at 7:30 pm. Other numbers on the programme include Heinrich Biber’s Battalia à 10, Caroline Shaw.s Entracte, and C.P.E. Bach’s Flute Concerto in D Minor. Over two hours long, this concert will be a tour de force. There will be an Open Dress Rehearsal at 2 pm with a suggested $25 donation at the door.
The Many Hats Theatre Company has come up with yet another entertaining comedy you’re sure to enjoy.Love and Luna involves two couples, Murray and Linda, and Ian and Becky, each of whom wishes to fill long retirement hours with something purposeful. Linda, a mom and retired baker, would like to bring something joyful to others, like the magical experience she had as a child. Murray, who feels lost as a retired salesman and is constantly annoying his wife, wants to find a way to share his enthusiasm and give back to people who are more lost than he is. Ian would like to break free as a mundane financial advisor and step into the limelight, while shy Becky would also like to step out of the shadows into that limelight. All their new objectives create “a breeding ground for humour" as they interact with each other in their paths toward their goals. Love and Luna runs from April 10 to May 3, on Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm with Sunday matinees at 2 pm on the Cannery Stage at 1475 Fairview Road in Penticton. Tickets for Adults are $35, and for Students and Seniors are $33.
The Kelowna Film Society begins its spring season at the Orchard Plaza Cinema on Wednesday, April 8, at 4 and 7 pm with a Nigerian film, My Father’s Shadow. The film is seen through the eyes of two young boys who spend a single day following their father, and because of their age, much of what we learn about the country and their father is clouded. The country in the midst of a general election is a land of contrasts, of violent unrest when compared to the calm, gentle atmosphere shared among the family. This is a beautiful film to view in both English and Yoruba with subtitles. Book your tickets early the Thursday morning before.
The following Wednesday, April 15, another of Canada’s renowned Inuit films, Uiksaringitara – Wrong Husband, will be screened. This is another film by renowned Inuit filmmaker Zacharias Kunuk. Many of you will recall Kunuk’s The Fast Runner, considered one of the best Canadian films of all time - I have a DVD of it on my bookshelf. His latest film is set “thousands of years in the past when supernatural forces threaten star-crossed lovers Sapa and Kaujak. Kunuk’s goal of preserving Inuit stories and traditions for future generations is realized in a tale of myth, magic and love set in the atmospheric Far North.” This traditional tale with its unearthly atmosphere promises a very special viewing experience - in Inuktitut with English subtitles.
As Easter nears, I wish you all a very happy and pleasant weekend with family and friends. When my family was much younger, we would hunt for those small, colourfully covered chocolate Easter eggs hidden all over the house. Months later, we found one inside a flower pot
See you soon!
Chris
Christopher Byrd
PCAC Director
Photographer: Fine Arts America
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