Patrons of Ed’s Coffeehouse will be treated to a side of eye candy along with their coffee from Jan. 25 to 30 as 34 art students from Lake Cowichan Secondary School have their artwork on display.
The art show’s opening night will take place at the local coffee shop on Jan. 25 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Grade 8 to 12 students enrolled in art this semester had the opportunity to submit their favorite piece from their portfolio. Admission for the exhibit is by donation, and all funds raised will go towards the upgrade of the art program’s pottery kiln.
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“Our art show is an end of semester celebration and opportunity for students to showcase the art they have done this semester,” said art teacher Nicole Lorusso. “The inspiration for the show came from my students. They share their talent with me every day and many love to see it hanging in the halls of our school, but their families and our community don’t always get a chance to see their work. Art can also be a solitary practice and many students do art for themselves and because they love the process. I also wanted to provide them with a chance to take a risk by sharing their work with others and celebrating their talent.”
Ed’s Coffeehouse is a staple in the community, and a favorite spot for both students and their teachers. Lorusso said the local business is well known for being an incredible support of both school, and community projects and has hosted other art and evening events in the past. Lorusso suspected owner Ed Ufnal would be happy to rent out his space for her student’s opening night evening show, but much to her surprise he offered up the walls of his coffee-shop for five days at no charge to showcase the students’ eye-catching artwork.
“He hung all of the artwork before I could even get there after work to help and he even offered to make special mocktails for our evening opening event,” said Lorusso. “He will be keeping the artwork up for a few more days so the entire community can have the opportunity to come out and see our students’ work. We are so incredibly grateful.”
“It’s very exciting to have the students work here,” said Ufnal. “We try to make the coffeehouse a community hub and enjoy hosting different events. We know a lot of the kids and it’s great to see their artistic side.”
The exhibit at Ed’s is varied as this year’s art show has no unifying theme, but Lorusso noted there are some similar mediums, such as printmaking using cyanotype and linocut processes. Several pieces involve surrealism metamorphosis and two of the students’ pieces were inspired by the 94 Calls to Action for Truth and Reconciliation.
“My favorite part is opening night when students have the opportunity to see their work hanging in public and get the chance to have their talents celebrated, and share with others while leading mini-workshops with attendees,” said Lorusso. “Many students are excited, but also a little nervous, to share their work in public. I hope they feel pride when they walk into Ed’s and see their work hanging on the wall. I hope our community recognizes our creative and talented youth at the Lake, and that they will want to support more opportunities of students making and sharing their art. The mini-workshops at our show opening, as well as future fundraising efforts will help us raise funds to fix our pottery kiln so that both current and future students can continue to experience the joy of making pottery.”