Final Report: Arts in the Parks ArtsBC/Assembly of BC Arts Councils Prepared and submitted by Sheryl McGraw, Executive Director Spring 2012

Overview BC Parks 100 - Arts in the Parks grants were made possible by The Ministry of the Environment and Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development. The purpose of the program is to assist arts organizations and First Nations arts organizations throughout B.C. with project and events that celebrate the 100th anniversary of BC Parks in 2011.

Applicant Overview The total number of applications received by the Assembly of BC Arts Councils was 26 with a total dollar request of $146,660.

The number of applicants funded was 22 with a total of $100,000 funding allocated.

Applications were submitted from the following communities (in some cases more than one applicant applied from one community). A list of successful applicants is included below.

• Abbotsford • Ashcroft • Brackendale • Burnaby • Gabriola Island • Golden • Hope • Kelowna • Maple Ridge • Meadow Creek • Mill Bay • Nanaimo • Peachland • Penticton • Prince George • Prince Rupert • Princeton • Queen Charlotte • Quesnel • Revelstoke • Sechelt • Smithers • Sooke • Tumbler Ridge • Vanderhoof

Adjudication Meeting The Assembly of British Columbia Arts Councils used a peer assessment process for determining funding support. Requests were reviewed by the organization’s staff, the program coordinator and assessed by an adjudication committee comprised of professionals chosen for their knowledge in the arts and culture sector. The committee was selected to represent a broad range of experience and to provide fair representation of gender, generations, regional and cultural diversity.

The adjudication meeting in Richmond was held on November 18. It was initially thought that two days would be required to review all applications, but the adjudication committee was efficient and required only one day to allocate $100,000. Prior to the meeting, the committee had reviewed the applications in detail and members were well prepared for the meeting.

Members of the committee included: • Ken Blackburn, Executive Director, Campbell River Arts Council, Campbell River, BC • Julie Fowler, Executive Director, Island Mountain Arts & the ArtsWells Festival of All Things Art, Wells, BC • Dolly Hopkins, Creative Architect, Vancouver, BC • T'Uy'Tanat-Cease Wyss, Ethnobotanist/Environmental Artist/Educator and Activist, Vancouver, BC • Sheryl McGraw, Arts & Cultural Consultant/Program Coordinator

Adjudication Results The following organizations were allocated funding to host numerous arts and cultural events in celebration of the BC Parks Centennial. Events took place between March and December 2011. A total of $100,000 was allocated.

Bamberton Historical Society/Seeds n’ Salt Theatre Company $5,000 BC Boys Choir $5,790 Crimson Coast Dance Society $5,000 Dze L K’ant Friendship Centre Society $5,000 Gabriola Arts Council $5,000 Golden and District Arts Council $5,000 Hope & District Arts Council $3,800 Lardeau Valley Opportunity Links Society $3,000 Maple Ridge Pitt Meadows Arts Council $5,000 Nechako Community Arts Council $5,000 Okanagan Artists Alternative Association $3,500

2 Prince George Symphony Orchestra $5,000 Prince Rupert Community Arts Council $5,000 Princeton Community Arts Council $5,000 Queen Charlotte Island Arts Council $1,410 Quesnel and District Community Arts Council $5,000 Revelstoke Arts Council $5,000 Squamish Arts Council $5,000 Sunshine Coast Arts Council $5,000 The Friends of Fintry Provincial Park Society $4,000 Tumbler Ridge Community Arts Council $5,000 Ullus Collective $3,500

Recognition of Funding All successful applicants were instructed to acknowledge funding support in all promotional materials, and verbally at the event when making speeches or announcements. They were provided with contact information for both the Ministry of the Environment, and Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development.

In addition, they were also asked to acknowledge the support of the Assembly of BC Arts Councils in all promotional materials.

All logos were to be used on posters, brochures, print ads and where possible on media releases and signage related to the funded project.

Final Reports Successful applicants were required to submit a final report on February 24, 2012 that included audience attendance, number of youth attending, copies of publications, pictures and letters of support. There was one report outstanding at the time of this submission. Despite our numerous requests, we have not yet received a report from the Tumbler Ridge Community Arts Council. We will continue to follow up with the applicant and will submit a copy to the Ministry.

It is the recommendation of the Program Manager for future programs that a hold back of 25% of funding be in place to encourage submission of the final report and to offset any potential surplus of funding. At the time of this report four final reports were outstanding. ArtsBC/Assembly continues to follow up with these applicants to obtain the outstanding reports.

3 Event Information: Arts in the Parks

As part of the Arts in the Parks program to celebrate the BC Parks Centennial in 2011, 22 organizations including First Nations participated in celebrations in provincial parks around the province. Although audience numbers are difficult to keep track of at free, public events, applicants reported audience figures of over 19,000 people. The percentage of youth attending was reported at 29%, which help demonstrate that the events and projects appealed to people of all ages.

As part of this report we have enclosed a map of the province with the Arts in the Parks celebrations noted. This helps to demonstrate the events were far- reaching and broad in scope.

Bamberton Historical Society/Seeds n’ Salt Theatre Company Event/Project: Bedtime Stories: Dreaming of Vancouver Island July 1 to 23, 2011, Strathcona Provincial Park Total Audience: 1453 Youth audience: 450

This event was a live theatre production that celebrated the 100th anniversary of Price Ellison’s Strathcona Expedition. The original show brought to life the story of BC’s first park, built province pride and ensured visitors and residents alike enjoyed the event. A DVD of the performance created a legacy component and visual documentation of the project. The production included a variety of musical styles, which appealed to all ages. The production was performed in both Goldstream Provincial Park, as well as Strathcona Provincial Park (Buttle Lake) and the BC Parks head office.

British Columbia Boys Choir Event/Project: Songscapes – A Choral Festival May 2 to June 27, 2011, Rathtrevor Park and Porteau Cove Park Total audience: 1500 Youth audience: 670

The 80-member British Columbia Boys Choir presented SongScapes – A Choral Festival in May and June 2011 in two provincial parks. On Monday, May 2, twelve choirs gathered to sing at SongScapes on the Beach in Rathtrevor Park in Parksville to celebrate the BC Parks 100th Anniversary and International Music Day. Over 1000 people attended the May 2nd event. It was a wet and windy day but as the festival began, the sun arrived, a rainbow appeared over the beach and the deer came out. Each choir performed and then together everyone sang the Canadian classic song, Hymn to Freedom by Oscar Peterson.

4 On Sunday, June 27 the British Columbia Boys Choir presented SongScapes in the park at Porteau Cove near Squamish presenting two free one-hour shows for the public. Over 500 people attended these performances.

When this project began, the goal was to perform outside of the Greater Vancouver area, however BC Parks officials in Victoria requested we perform our June Songscapes festivals in Greater Vancouver, as there was less activity in the region. The BC Boys Choir approached several Park Managers in regard to dates but because of routine maintenance or other events taking place, the proposed dates would not work. Further to this, late June meant no schools or community choirs could participate as they were on a summer timetable by then. The event on May 2nd was a true representation of the original SongScapes proposal.

Crimson Coast Dance Society Event/Project: Margie Gillis Residency, Dancing in the Heart of the Outside World May 15 to 18, 2011, Newcastle Island Provincial Park Total audience: 75 Youth audience: 5

Dancing in the Heart of the Outside World, a 4-day workshop and public showing featuring dance in a BC Park. Participants attending the residency gain the experience of creating an outdoor site-specific dance that honoured the shape, texture, integrity and history of the land. The location was chosen, as it was fortuitous. The location, particularly in mid-May, was awakening from its winter closure and provide a tranquil and beautiful place to host the workshops and residency.

Dze L K’ant Friendship Centre Society Event/Project: Arts in the Parks July 16, 2011 in Tyhee Lake Total audience 110 Youth audience: 20

Arts in the Parks at Tyhee Lake featured performances by the Gidahmes Dancer as well as the Bear Lake Pow Wow Dancers. In addition to performing artists, two visual artists demonstrated and displayed their work, and one of the local songstresses gave a half hour performance as part of the entertainment for the day. There were traditional war canoe and dragon boat rides throughout the day followed by bannock served with traditional tea. Even an eagle made an appearance to top of the day.

5 Gabriola Arts Council Event/Project: Park It! August 1, 2011 in Gabriola Sands Park Total audience: 500 Youth audience: 150

Gabriola Arts Council celebrated the BC Parks 100th Anniversary with Park It! - A free, live concert at a local waterfront park where 10 local acts representing 31 musicians were engaged for a series of 15-45 minute musical sets. Five of ten acts represented groups who performed their own original materials to an estimated audience of 500-600 people over an 8-hour period. This family friendly event was judged to be a huge success by the audience, musicians and committee members. GAC is happy to report that there is a groundswell of local support to repeat the event again this year.

The MC for the event introduced the event with a brief history of Gabriola Sands Provincial Park and included a larger overview of the history of BC Parks. Each performer also began their set with a brief anecdote of what BC Parks meant to them. Several musical acts either wrote music specifically mentioning the role of parks in their lives while many others used BC Parks 100th Anniversary theme for their selection. Several times throughout the day several spontaneous variations of “Happy Birthday” to BC Parks burst out with lots of enthusiastic support from the audience.

“…as darkness descended I looked over my shoulder for the last moment before I left the park, and I could feel the spirit of the community.” Sas Jelford, Executive Director, Vancouver Tap Dance Society/MC for Park It!

Golden and District Arts Council/Kicking Horse Culture Event/Project: The Bugaboo – A Celebration in Story & Imagine April 1 to December 31, 2011, Bugaboos Provincial Park Total audience: 1500 Youth audience: 300

Kicking Horse Culture received support for a mixed media exhibit of art that documents and celebrates Bugaboos Provincial Park. During the curatorial process, we name the exhibit: The Bugaboo – A Celebration in Story & Imagine and focused on a mixed media combination of photography and text as recounted by photographers who had experienced the Park. We designed and created 12 30”x 40” printed panels that constituted the physical exhibit in KHC’s Art Gallery of Golden. A documentary catalogue was published in a 14-page soft cover full colour edition and on our website at: http://kickinghorseculture.ca/art-gallery-of-golden/the-bugaboos-a- celebration-in-story-image/

The curator was renowned mountaineer Pat Morrow and featured the work of acclaimed mountaineering professionals and hobbyists alike. We specifically wanted to provide the personal experiences and the history behind the

6 expeditions to the Bugaboos. We were also proud to receive permission from the Whyte Museum in Banff to use a handful of historical images taken by Albert MacCarthy in 1916. Tay Hanson, a climbing ranger for BC Parks a the Bugaboos wrote a personal forward for the catalogue and online exhibit and was on site for the opening reception an spoke to the more than 100 people who attended the opening reception.

The exhibit has been booked to travel to Pynelogs Cultural Centre in Invermere for their spring festival Wings Over the Rockies in April 2012. We are also in discussions with the Whyte Museum for an exhibit run in Banff.

Hope and District Arts Council Event/Project: Arts in the Parks – Birthday Celebration July 23, 2011 at the Othello Tunnels at Coquihalla Canyon Provincial Park Total audience: 1,200 Youth audience: 200

On July 23 from 11am to 4pm over 1,200 participants from our community and elsewhere in the Lower Mainland enjoyed an event celebrating the BC Parks 100. They enjoyed the natural beauty of the park, entertainment for all ages, speeches by local and provincial dignitaries, birthday cake, tours of the infamous tunnels and art projects. Several local artists including the Kettle Valley Brakeman, Positively Puppets and Ishdafish performed and demonstrated their talents during the day. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive and encouraging.

To encourage participation, HDAC partnered with Care Transit to offer free public transportation to and from the park. Guided tours of Coquihalla Canyon Provincial Park conducted by staff of the Hope Museum featured the history of

7 the Kettle Valley Railway, and information about the motion picture filming that has taken place in the area. The Museum also set up a display at the park with information to compliment the tours.

Lardeau Valley Opportunity Links Society Event/Project: A Creative Nature: Celebrating Longevity in BC Parks June 19 to August 21, 2011 Total audience: 100 Youth: 30

A Creative Nature: Celebrating Longevity in BC Parks featured five artists display their work and interact with the public at Davis Creek campsite each Sunday from June 19 to August 21. The project saw approximately 130 people take part, and they would have liked more but the weather did not cooperate. The people who attended loved it.

Each artist who participated explained to visitors that they were there to enhance their experience by sharing tips and techniques to encourage people to be more creative and to enjoy the incredible inspiration from the BC Parks system. They were provided with materials to experiment with their own creative nature, and investigate the many ways that art and nature intersect. The artists who participated in this event include Jim Lawrence (photographer), Susan VanRooy (journaling), Cathy Aitken (photography), Maggie Oliver (pencil sketches and oil paintings) and Carol Ross (mixed media and painting).

Maple Ridge Pitt Meadows Arts Council Event/Project: Artists in the Park 100th Celebration August 6, 2011, Golden Ears Provincial Park. Total audience: 3000 Youth audience: 1500

Our event held August 6 was to provide artists from all disciplines to gather together and celebrate the beautiful surroundings of Golden Ears Provincial Park. Inspired by the natural beauty of the park, participating artists encouraged participants of all ages to engage in activities with demos, visual art exhibits, displays and interactive art and dance stations. Our celebration was located at Allouette South Beach day use area, which was a perfect location for participants for access to our activities and great entertainment.

It was a beautiful summer day, which brought thousands of people out to enjoy the park and our activities. Our musical line up included performances by Rick Tippe, an award winning country music artist; Denis Leclerc, Fiddler and Storyteller; Ivan Boudreau, Contemporary Folk Musician; and Nigel Tucker, Celtic Musician.

We had a BC Parks booth at our event hosted by staff from the park who were handing out stickers, BC Parks Moose hats and other promotional materials.

8 We also had a BC Parks 100th Anniversary cake cutting ceremony and handed out cake to those who attended.

“It’s fantastic. It’s such a great combination because a lot of artists draw their inspiration from the outdoors and nature…It’s so much fun to be able to bring visual arts with performing arts to this park.” said Armstrong, president of the Arts Council.

Nechako Community Arts Council Event/Project: Arts in the Parks July 16, 2011, Beaumont Provincial Park Total audience: 500 Youth audience: 300

We held a one-day event on July 16th in Beaumont Provincial Park. The event focused on music and a celebration of the visual arts. The theme was My Favourite BC Parks Moment. We accepted entries from all genres of artists who depicted their favourite BC Parks moment through their artistic choice. Most of the entries we received were paintings.

Chief Nooski of Nautley First Nations opened the day followed by a traditional dance group. The day began around 11:00 am and ended at 10:00 pm that night. There were 10 groups that played throughout the day.

Okanagan Artists Alternative Association Event/Project: Geotag Art March 1 to October 31, 2011, Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park Total audience: 1000 (on-line) Note: An estimated 10,000 people interacted with the physical works during Canada Day festivities.

GeoTag Art allowed visitors to interact with contemporary art beyond the walls of the gallery through their handheld smart devices, such as iPhones or Blackberrys. Throughout Kelowna and in Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park, location-specific physical installations were combined with QR codes which, when scanned, with a smart device, allowed access to online presentations of digital media. This project, focused on work by Okanagan artists exploring creative connections to the land, include a strong representation from Ullus Collective members, which grounded the project in indigenous traditional practices of locating artworks and stories on the land. The use of global positioning technology created a new media tool that builds on the tradition of story poles, pictographs and rock landmarks.

Central to the project was the occurrence of works within the boundaries of Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park – in itself a significant recognition of the BC Parks Centennial. Visitors interacted with the physical art installations and accessed virtual works through the insitu scanning of QR codes on smart phone devices.

9 Prince George Symphony Orchestra Event/Project: Arts in the Parks June 5, 2011, West Lake Provincial Park Total audience: 200 Youth audience: 50

The Prince George Symphony Orchestra celebrated the 100th Anniversary of BC Parks with an afternoon of music and a picnic in West Lake Provincial Park in Prince George.

The Orchestra presented a predominately brass concert with the group In the Mood who played in the open spaces of the park to an appreciative audience. Music genres ranged from the period of swing to the contemporary.

We sang Happy Birthday BC Parks and formally cut a large audience-sized cake that served everyone in the park! Using the large picnic shelter on site, we served up hot dogs and hamburgers to over 250 people. We also challenged our website audience to research the BC Parks website to find answers to our trivia contest.

“The symphony did a bang up job from the burgers, hotdogs, birthday cake and most of the music…your group needs to stand up and blow your horn more often because it was very well done.” Area Supervisor, Ministry of Environment, BC Parks.

10 Prince Rupert Community Arts Council Event/Project: Kitson Island Days July 2 & 3, 2011, Kitson Island Total audience: 83 Youth audience: 11

The Kitson Island Days project was designed to promote awareness of Kitson Island BC Marine Park situated near Prince Rupert. Central to this was the commissioning of a new work for a concert band to be performed and recorded on Kitson Island by the Prince Rupert Community Band. The Arts Council partnered with the Prince Rupert and Region Music Society, which assumed responsibility for commissioning, scoring, printing, recording and producing of the Kitson Island Suite. A very public and widespread search for photos and drawings of Kitson Island yielded hundreds of results (from 1930s to 2011). These were used in the brochure and CD, and a promotional DVD, which ran continuously for the month of June in a storefront window across from City Hall. In May, we arranged to meet with a BC Park Ranger to tour the site (he had never been there before or was aware that it was a BC Park). On June 11 and 12, one movement of the Kitson Island Suite was premiered at Prince Rupert’s SeaFest celebration and a second movement was premiered on July 1 at the Canada Day celebration (despite storm force winds and driving rain).

Because the weather didn’t cooperate much of the live band performance on Kitson Island was not useable because of the sound of heavy rainfall on the tent over the band. For this reason, we decided to set up additional recording sessions at the Lester Centre of the Arts in October. These recordings along with the recorded ambient sounds were edited and mixed for the final production of the CD.

The Kitson Island Suite remains in the repertoire of the Community Band and will be performed by a massed band from Smithers, Hazelton, Terrace and Prince Rupert on Good Friday, 2012. After July 2012, the sheet music will be available to download by other community bands. The dedication on the sheet music includes acknowledgement of BC Parks 100 Years.

Princeton Community Arts Council Event/Project: The History of Manning to a Backdrop of Music August 18, 2011, Manning Park Total audience: 225 Youth audience: 35

11 The Princeton Community Arts Council, the Manning Park Resort and the provincial park staff collaborated to present “The History of Manning” at the Lightening Lake area with some performances in the alpine meadow. The event surpassed all of our expectations with all of the activities described in our proposal were realized. We had to adjust our timing as once the sun set in the park; the temperature dropped dramatically, and potentially affected both the musicians and their instruments.

Our opening speaker Kelley Cook described how the dream of a park was more then one hundred years old. She has published a book on its history of Manning Park, which has generated $1,000 to be used for trail restoration in the park. The Princeton Community Band followed by playing O Canada to the enthusiastic crowd.

The music continued with First Nations singer Tiinesha Begaye who sang her unique blend of Native accompanied by her hand drumming. Other entertainment included a small group of Princeton Highland Dancers, a musical group from the River Road Theatre in Princeton, readings of historic poems, and a classical repertoire performed by Concertante Chamber that included a work by an Okanagan composer.

The Arts Council was thrilled with the outcome and is hopeful more events will follow. President Del Hall said, “…this event was our first venture into Manning Park, but not our last”. There were people attending from Denmark, Sweden, Japan and Germany. One family who were camping said it was the highlight of their holiday.

“People were entranced, it appears, by the vision of a string quartet playing outdoors, with a background of herons flying above, fish jumping, snow on the mountains and setting sun…They were also enthusiastic about all the other performances! So obviously performing arts at the parks in wanted, needed and appreciated. Elizabeth Lupton, Classical Musician/Participant

12 Haida Gwaii Arts Council (formerly Queen Charlotte Island Arts Council) Event/Project: Me and Naikoon & Celebrate Naikoon: Plein-Art Art Day exhibit July 2 & 3, 2011, Naikoon Provincial Park Total audience: 350 Youth audience: 75

Event 1- Me and Naikoon Haida Gwaii Arts Council offered two nature/photography walks in June; one with professional photographer Jack Litrell at Two Hill and a second with professional photographer Jason Shafto at Misty Meadows. Both professional photographers shared tips and photography secrets during the walks. In November, we did a call for photos and received over 100 for our island wide photo show.

Two photo shows were held (one at Queen Charlotte’s musical coffeehouse and the other at The Ground Café in Masset) for voting, so people could choose their favourite three. The photos were also posted online through our Flicker account: www.flickr.com/photos/hgartscouncil-naikoonpark. This enabled off island contributors to view all of the entries. We had entries from all over BC, as well as Ontario and Alberta.

Event 2 - Celebrate Naikoon: Plein-Art Art Day exhibit Artists met at Naikoon Provincial Park for a day of walking, sketching, painting and inspiration. The event was open to everyone and the purpose was to celebrate the natural beauty of the park and give artists and opportunity to meet and exchange ideas, and be inspired.

13 There was an open call for art submissions for the November exhibit titled, Celebrate Naikoon. 15 local artists including two youths exhibited their work at Queen B’s Café/Gallery in Queen Charlotte.

Quesnel and District Community Arts Council Event/Project: Celebrate the Arts in BC Parks 100th Anniversary August 14, 2011, 10 Mile Lake Provincial Park Total Audience: 250 Youth audience: 25

The Quesnel and District Community Arts Council partnered with the Native Friendship Centre to put on a very successful event at 10 Mile Lake Provincial Park. The event included Aboriginal dancers and singers, Metis Dancers, youth and adult fiddlers and a Chinese ancestry improv singer. Aboriginal women made bannock and were busy throughout the event using over 70 pounds of flour. An elder graciously welcomed us to the Red Bluff Indian Band’s territory. The Medicine Walk with elders was only three quarters completed as the rain came down in torrents. The photos of early days in 10 Mile Lake were donated to the museum. A large framed picture of the Dooley’s who donated the land to BC Parks was donated to the Arts Council. We were thrilled and will hang the picture at the Arts and Recreation Centre for everyone to enjoy. It was a wonderful event that had a significant impact on the community. We also enjoyed working with the Native Friendship Centre.

Invited guests included the mayor gave speeches. We were pleased that the BC Parks (North Thompson-Cariboo Division) passed out information about the parks, and had “Jerry the Moose” roaming the site. They provided a beautifully decorated 100th birthday cake for the audience.

A PowerPoint Presentation was made to document the event.

Revelstoke Arts Council Event/Project: Blanket Creek Environmental Art Photographic Project- Celebrating 100 Years of BC Provincial Parks May to December 2011, Blanket Creek Provincial Park Total Audience: 1000 Youth audience: 75

After attending a one-day workshop learning about environmental art and photography, fifteen artists from Revelstoke Visual Arts Society spent time in Blanket Creek Provincial Park during the summer of 2011 creating pieces of art using natural materials. Participants had the opportunity to receive park orientation from the Parks Facility Warden and then visited the park on a number of occasions separately or in groups. They discussed their project with interested members of the public at the park.

The artists selected their best photographic image for reproduction on a 24” x

14 3” canvas and these were exhibited at the Revelstoke Art Gallery for the month of October following an opening reception. Some of the images were also displayed for three months in the local RBC branch as part of the city’s Winter Art Walk.

Instead of producing a book as originally planned, the images were used to create a 2012 calendar and postcards. The exhibit also featured a DVD of images.

As an introduction to the exhibition the images and text about the project were printed on to an aluminum composite brushed metal sign. This legacy will be displayed at Blanket Creek Provincial Park in 2012.

Squamish Arts Council Event/Project: Alice of Wonderland’s Magical Mystery Tour June 26, 2011, Alice Lake Provincial Park Total Audience: 450+ Youth audience: 250+

The event, Alice of Wonderland’s Magical Mystery Tour, took place on Sunday June 26th at Alice Lake Provincial Park and was a super success. There were people that camped an extra night just to be there for the event with their kids. There were people that came from Lower Mainland and some that came from Whistler. The event focused around the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party where children and adults were invited to sit down and have a cup of tea and cupcake with Alice’s friends. The goldsmith, Martin Vseticka, was also on hand forging copper rings and children lined up to receive their own ring. There was an educational treasure hunt around Alice Lake, facilitated by a self-guided handout available at the tea party. The tea party was absolutely a magical atmosphere; this was created by the professional actors who hosted the party in full costume and make-up. There were 200 homemade cupcakes made by Patsy Tompkins that disappeared rather quickly. Artists Samera Gibson and Laurel Terlesky facilitated the painting of an acrylic canvas on the beach by the children at the event. Dagan Beach created a fotofilm of the event; a time- lapsed still-photo movie that is now a legacy on the Squamish Arts Council website. http://player.vimeo.com/video/26980630?byline=0&portrait=0

The only negative aspect is that the public demanded it be an annual event!

There was a front-page spread of the event and a report by reporter Meagan Roberts in the Squamish Chief newspaper.

BC Parks 100 celebration was recognized as part of our event in the posters advertising the event, in the newspaper articles and in the fotofilm by Dagan

15 Beach. The park rangers joined the event with Jerry the moose parks mascot, and the rangers were handing out hats and stickers.

Sunshine Coast Arts Council Event/Project: Young in the Park May 21, 2011, Porpoise Bay Provincial Park Total Audience: 300 Youth audience: 75

Young in the Park was an event that saw local professional musicians mentor younger performers, all playing unique versions of the music of Neil Young. After a month of rehearsals, the concert took place on May 21 at the outdoor amphitheatre at Porpoise Bay Provincial Park in Sechelt, on the Sunshine Coast of BC. The event was a huge success on every level, giving confidence and exposure to young musicians, as well as celebrating the anniversary of BC Parks. BC Park rangers were on hand to give out moose ears and to answer any questions about the park or celebration. BC Park representatives also had an opportunity to speak from the stage during the intermission, recognizing the 100th anniversary, and promoting BC Parks.

The Friends of Fintry Provincial Park Society Event/Project: Fintry Edwardian Fair: Celebrating BC Parks 100th Anniversary July 16, 2011, Fintry Provincial Park Total Audience: 1000 Youth audience: 100-150

On July 16, the Friends of Fintry celebrated the 100th Anniversary of BC Parks with the inaugural Fintry Fair on the scenic lawns of the Manor House. The day began with an Early Bird Pancake breakfast. James Dun-Waters and the Kalamalka Pipe Band opened the Fair officially. In addition to the entertainment provided by actors and musicians, there were 30 booths with artists, potters, and weavers showing and selling their work, as well as local musicians who played during the afternoon. Some donated a piece, which was later entered into a raffle. Dignitaries attending gave short speeches recognizing the BC Parks 100th birthday including Barry Penner (BC Cabinet Minister) local municipal officials, and John Trewhitt, the senior BC Parks representative in the Okanagan Valley. The event took place as we had planned, but with the happy exception that twice as many people attended than we expected.

Tumbler Ridge Community Arts Council - no report submitted Total Audience: Youth audience:

Ullus Collective Event/Project: Tag Your It! Geotag Art March 1 to October 31, 2011, Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park Total audience: 250+ (on-line)

Ullus collective are offered a location-based art experience to wireless

16 audiences visiting Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park this summer. In partnership with the Alternator Centre for Contemporary Art, they invited the public to participate in the 100-year anniversary of BC Parks, by checking in to an art experience showcasing first nations video, sound, sculpture and painting.

This innovative platform allowed wireless audience to link to works by Okanagan artists and explore creative connections to the land. The artists stimulated and entertained visitors as they walked, biked and hiked along the Kettle Valley trail.

Geotagging was used via GPS technology use application on smart-phones and other mobile devices to deliver timely and relevant messages to target parks visitors with location-specific artwork, on their mobile devices, based on where they are at any given time. This tool was easy, efficient, engaging and was more extensible way of messaging that connected with parks visitors.

Artists can add depth; detail and an interactive experience to their physical displays by using 2-D codes linked to audio and narrative files or may rely solely on the digital experience.

The Ullus Collective shared multi-disciplinary forms of new media so the public could engage in how the land speaks to these innovative SYILX artists. It was a creative way to showcase first nation’s art so the public could have live interaction with first nation’s artists that is authentic. It also allowed marketing opportunities for the public to engage in a totally new way. Too many times first nation art is exploited and this is a positive way to showcase authentic forms of innovative traditional indigenous art.

Participating artists included members the Ullus Collective: Mariel Belanger, Tracey Bonneau, Warren Hooley, Levi George, and John Terbasket.

Geotagart.com is a portal to contemporary art that challenged all our expectations and the potential is exciting to this new online digital world. The experience was online GeotagArt.com from June 10 - October 31 where the public could upload the works through QRL bar code to find new locations and interact with artworks.

The event took place in Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park in the summer of 2011. All promotional material had the BC Parks logos on it. The opening took place at the park where visitors celebrated the park and engaged in a meaningful online experience that was innovative and creative.

17 General feedback from applicants The Squamish Arts Council wishes to thank you for the $5000 funding approval for our Arts in the Parks application and plan. We greatly appreciate your support and look forward to planning for the event. Martin Vseticka, Squamish Arts Council

On behalf of the Bamberton Historical Society's Seeds and Salt Theatre Co. I would like to thank you for approving our request for funding. We are thrilled to be able to include a story about Strathcona Park as part of our summer production. Maureen Alexander, BHS President

This is fabulous news! Thank you so much! We will invite the musicians immediately so that we can arrest any thoughts they might have (heaven forbid) of vacations or holiday travel! Ruth Langner, General Manager, Prince George Symphony Orchestra

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