The Okanagan School of the Arts and its Shatford Centre home may be facing a looming crisis, but the historic building was a happening place Wednesday night.
In the basement, makers made stuff in the IdeaForge studio. In the auditorium, a dance class went through its paces.
And on top of all that, a gala reception swirled through the hallways, signalling the official unveiling of a brand new exhibit.
It was a prime example of Shatford functioning as it should.
Called "Spark Joy," the new exhibit features the talents of local artists in a non-juried showcase of works that "spark joy."
More than 30 artists are participating - including a six-year-old girl and her four-year-old brother - and more than 60 paintings are on display.
The opening was a grand affair, even in the face of an uncertain future of the organization behind it.
Two of the most prominently positioned works - and certainly two of the largest - came from the hands of Penticton's Nalidsa Sukprasert.
Sukprasert recently moved to the Okanagan from Squamish, but is originally from Malaysia, where she painted primarily "about social issues."
She's made quite the impression no matter where she lives, and she's won numerous international art awards along the way.
Wednesday night she described one of her two oil-on-canvas paintings, a work that took her a week to complete, as "the face of a friend. I have memories of her. And her name is Joy. So I'm playing with the name of the exhibition."
Just down the hall from Sukprasert's piece were four impressive yet tiny canvases, two of which were created by Penticton's Payton Nielsen. The other two came from her brother Beckham. The combined age of the two budding artists is ten.
And apparently, it comes easy for both of them. Payton said it took her less than ten minutes to paint each of hers, one of which was a gorgeous flower. Brother Beckham took a bit longer to complete his - one whole hour - and said he first saw the trees that inspired him in West Kelowna.
Their father said their artistic talent comes as no surprise. They were, he said, "raised in a family of artists."
Included in that family is a fellow by the name of Dennis Nielsen, who said he is a past Shatford instructor. And he had a few comments about artistic value and the current OSA/Shatford situation.
"The arts have to be supported for the value they bring to the community. It's not a value that most people recognize, but when people come here from other cities, the first thing they want to see is the culture. The arts aren't as splashy as the sports and other attractions, yet it's even more valuable.
"So it has to be supported by people other than the artist, because they pour everything out and don't get a lot back. Certainly not enough to support a gorgeous building like this that could house a world-renowned arts centre. So how you get that support and how it comes about is the dilemma."
Nielsen added that he's currently "trying with a number of artists to get a print room collective going in the basement (of Shatford). I've got equipment here already, but it's a difficult process."
Continuing on that theme was local painter Norberto Rodriguez, whose depiction of a jailed Donald Trump garnered its fair share of attention.
Rodriguez said he's volunteered "for seven years at least" and is part of the Shatford exhibition committee. And he has a strong take on recent developments.
"It was a surprise to me and many others. What the heck is happening? We know it's a very old building, but it was working. It was working fine.
"Jane Shaak (former OSA executive director) was a force at Shatford for ten years. She made a lot of things happen. But something happened in July (of 2018). I don't know exactly what is was, but things started to change.
"And then no interim president came on board. And then in November, they say we have to change the direction of the Shatford Centre. So they had an open house. To me, it was a very confusing event. They were using a lot of business oriented language that a lot of folks didn't understand or agree with. It was run by a consultant, without a 100 percent understanding of the local scene.
"Then supposedly the consultant produced a report that the public and the membership didn't have access to. After that, in February, they announced the possibility of closing the centre because of huge financial problems. What? Just like that?
"A lot of the things are behind the scene. We the membership don't have access to enough information to give comprehensive input. Next week (a key OSA board meeting on March 21st) will be very interesting."
Like Rodriguez, Deb Tougas is part of the Shatford exhibition committee. She also sat on the OSA board for a couple of years and has essentially been involved with Shatford since it became an arts hub. "I even picked out the colours for some of the walls," she said with a laugh.
She described part of the process behind her stunning "Feather Series" piece hanging at the main entrance, saying she places feathers directly into the wet paint, lets them dry, and peels them off. She brought the painting to Shatford from its home at Nk' Mip Cellars in Osoyoos.
And she was upbeat. "Spark Joy is about what brings you joy. And we had a huge response. Look at all the paintings that are here," she said.
But she was also realistic. "I love this building and it would be a shame to see it die. Look how busy it is tonight. But I think there needs to be more workshops offered. Look at the newsletter, and the workshops they offer. They need to change them up a bit.
"And have you seen the kitchen here? They have a cheese-making course going on tomorrow. That kitchen could be rented out for weddings, for anything. That's the kind of thing we need to get going in there.
"There's a million ideas, but I'm not on the board anymore. Different workshops, different art classes, so many things we could do. There's an idea they just came up with. They're offering studio space upstairs. Two hundred dollars gets you a locker and an open area space. That's the way to go."
And she put a positive spin on recent media headlines. "With the last press that came out, now at least people are talking. One of the things people can do is to come here and look at the building, give them your opinion. Be a member, it's 20 bucks."
