The seventh annual Paint the Town grand finale took place Saturday, Aug. 6 at various locations around town.
“This year we did Parisian style, which is where the alla-prima (one session) event originated,” says SAGA Public Art Gallery director/curator Tracey Kutschker.
The event was combined with an idea Kutschker had picked up from Qualicum, in which artists, rather than choosing their own spot, drew their locations from a hat.
“We even gave them overnight, which is unusual,” Kutschker says. “In Paris they get their assigned spots in the morning and they get three hours; it’s a race.”
The challenge was a bit much for some of the artists who have participated in the past, resulting in about half the participants, says Kutschker.
The event began with a Parisian dinner Friday evening that fostered camaraderie and generated enthusiasm and excitement among participants.
Kutschker, who was appointed gallery curator in April, says the 75th anniversary of the Hudson Avenue Building in 2012 is cause for many exciting events being in the works. Look for Paint the Town to return in a different format the following year.