Sundog Saskatoon

SUNDOG
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT FAIRE
December 2, 3 & 4, 2011

Saskatoon hosted the 37th annual Sundog Arts and Entertainment Faire Dec.2nd weekend at the Credit Union Centre. The first Sundog Handcraft Faire was held in the lower level of the Centennial Auditorium in 1974. The event grew in popularity every year and was moved to the Saskatoon Field House in 1983 to better accommodate the crowds and then in 1994 to Saskatchewan Place after one year at the Titan Building.

As per the organizations website www.sundoghandcraftfaire.com,  the prime focus of the Sundog Arts Society is to promote arts, crafts and music, making them available to the general Saskatoon public. Approximately, 14,000 attend the show every year.

I found the festival busy, humming and colorful, packed with entrepreneur / craftspeople and artists proudly showing there creations. The Saturday afternoon historically being the busiest time of the weekend. Although, I did not notice many carrying shopping bags, I was told by the few artists that I spoke with, that they were breaking even with the booth rental and some other expenses.The weather was better this year, compared to ice rink parking lot of last year. However the number of people on a Saturday afternoon who chose to venture out was much smaller. The few people i talked with were not happy with the $8.00 admission charge.

My own impression was that the effort by the Artisans, craftspeople is what makes any show a success, however the venue and environment are critical as well.

First, the balcony area was too jam packed with vendors and booths on both sides of the aisle, with little room for the visitors to peruse through various booths and showcases.

Lack of overhead adequate lighting felt oppressive as one looked up. The show areas and booths were brightly lit, however it made the upper and lower levels disjointed.

This is not to say that I did not fully enjoy the show. I was thrilled to be among these passionate creative, hardworking men and women. The enthusiasm , courtesy and genuinity of creative entrepreneurship made this an uplifting experience.

Following are some of  and Artists/ Craftspeople that I visited.

Cecilia Elizabeth

Cecilia's vibrant watercolors are spectacular. She has trained extensively under many internationally renowned water colorists and is passionate to pass  on this expertise.  Cecilia is the proud owner of the River house Studio-Art Gallery in Saskatoon where she provides watercolor instruction to beginner to intermediate art enthusiasts. During evening check out the  delightfully lit up gallery in celebration of the season.http://www.facebook.com/pages/Riverhouse-Art-Gallery

Cindy Hoppe

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It is the first time that I took a good, although not long enough, look at fabric art.

What really impressed me was the delicacy and fine texture of the pieces, considering

 that these are previously used materials.

More information on http://www.cindyhoppe.com/about.php Beautiful story how

she got started in creating Fabric art with her mother.

Miriam Thomas

Miriam Thomas started working when she was a little girl in Chitek Lake . She helped her mother make many items needed for the community in Leoville SK. Contact Miriam through the Chitek Lake Handicrafts in Leoville.

Daryl Richardson

Aesthetic combined with metal has that enduring quality and that is exactly what Daryl's  creations are about. In our brief conversation he told me that his art pieces are now residing with various collectors in many parts of the world. Check out more of Daryl's work on his website www.darylrichardson.ca.

Paula Cooley

Paula combines, robust form,functionality and aesthetic in her pottery designs. She is featured as Artist of the day in Carol Epps blog, musingaboutmud.blogspot.com.  More of her art on Paula's website www.paulacooley.com

Sheryl and Ruth

What a pleasure it was for me to meet these two entrepreneurs, who combine the comfort emotionality, functionality, and gorgeous designs in their creations. Check out their website  for a closer look at the designs.http://www.wix.com/sheryl_and_ruth/beyondthebindingquilts

Susan Alvarez

Although , not large in selection, Susan's jewellery is breath taking.

To contact  her. 306-949-3207

Val Moker

Val Moker is best known as an award winning painter of Western Art. She won the “Best new Artist Award” at the Calgary Stampede in 1999, the “Peoples’ Choice Award” at the Canadian Portrait Academy, and has followed up with other citations Her website www.valmoker.com

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