BY KIRSTEN BOLTON
For ArtSpring
In a year full of milestones to celebrate, challenges to tackle and opportunities to connect, the highlight of 2024 at ArtSpring was undoubtedly its 25th Anniversary Festival in April, corresponding with the date of the ribbon cutting by Birgit and Robert Bateman in 1999.
Opening its doors after over a decade of planning, fundraising and construction setbacks, ArtSpring was a venue willed into existence by the passion and resourcefulness of a motivated community.
Today, it has earned a reputation not only as a centre for the island’s many professional and amateur artists, presenters and students but as the premiere arts venue across the Gulf Islands for attracting regional, national and international performing artists. This past year saw some of the best of both streams of programming.
The 25th Anniversary Festival captured this sentiment as it shone the majority of the spotlight on community talent, with a few special events such as two sold-out headliner Jim Cuddy Band concerts, both opened by local up-and-comer Salome Cullen. For added resonance, it was uncovered that Blue Rodeo, the trail blazing Canadian band Cuddy co-founded in the 1980s, performed at an early fundraiser for ArtSpring.
Japanese drummers, an Everyday People dance party potluck, adult and youth choirs, a basket-weaving workshop, a rock-painting station, open mics and a sit-down with cultural commentator Max Wyman about the state of the arts in Canada — it was a five-day festival jam-packed with creativity and exchange.
Produced by Christina Penhale with support from ArtSpring staff and almost 100 volunteers, the festival welcomed close to 2000 visitors and engaged 290 individual artists, speakers and performers as part of 46 different groups or acts.
Another milestone in 2024 for ArtSpring was Treasure Fair, its annual marquee fundraising event every July. The fundraiser achieved its highest-ever result in part because of the generous donation of a 1956 Porsche Speedster replica to auction, along with a particularly strong turn-out for other collectables, experiences and donations to the “new lobby carpet” campaign.
In August, ArtSpring was proud to announce another first by establishing a $1-million Legacy Endowment Fund managed by the Victoria Foundation, which was sparked by a generous legacy bequest from a former ArtSpring board member known for his musical mentorship. This is the initial phase of what ArtSpring hopes will grow to become a $5-million fund to help secure its financial sustainability moving forward.
The challenge of funding and financing in the arts was a theme ArtSpring faced in 2024, like so many other arts organizations around the world. The post-pandemic fallout, shifts in the touring landscape and sharply rising costs on everything from artist booking fees to travel to utilities has made it increasingly difficult to survive.
More than ever, strong partnerships became the answer for executive and artistic director Howard Jang.
“By partnering with BC Live and other Vancouver Island presenters, we can collectively agree to attract certain artists because they can do a mini tour that is worthwhile and we all benefit,” said Jang. “ArtSpring was able to pull off a season filled with top-notch performances that delighted and inspired, and it reinforced the impact of what we can accomplish when we come together.”
When pushed to identify some of his favourite ArtSpring Presents performances, Jang is reluctant in a season so robust.
“My highlights include the intimate performances of ‘These Are Songs I Sing When I’m Sad’ hosted at The Stonehouse property, which was an experiment in off-site venues for us,” said Jang. “Also coming to mind is the multi-day Matriarchs Uprising, a celebration of performances and workshops by Indigenous choreographers, a stunning world premiere from the Gryphon Trio, and Deb Williams’ two-day personal storytelling workshop which just had the most funny, uplifting and vulnerable outcome with participants. Such a joy.”
The new 2024/2025 season exploded in October with the controversial Cliff Cardinal one-man show of Shakespeare’s As You Like It aka “Land Acknowledgement,” which polarized and challenged audiences, along with ArtSpring’s first-ever hip hop concert from Snotty Nose Rez Kids. October and November saw a record six shows sell out, including the Banff Mountain Film Festival, Tentacle Tribe dance and Ô-Celli — eight cellos on stage with a salute to the movies.
Expanding audiences and community connections was important in 2024, not just in terms of programming that appeals to different audiences and ages, but outreach and communications.
The Angel Ticket Program got its wings by making the arts more affordable at only $15 a seat for any ArtSpring Presents performance. The volunteer Roundtable Committee rolled up its sleeves to advise on public programming and organize community-directed events such as the “Pre-history of ArtSpring” panel and the children’s Halloween party as a tie-in to Victoria Ballet’s performance of Frankenstein.
The first meeting of a new Youth Advisory Committee comprised of island teens took place, and ArtSpring’s selection as one of only six B.C. arts facilities to participate in a mental health analysis called Arts on Prescription puts this island arts organization in good company in making the claim and the argument that the arts have a measurable positive impact to people’s lives.