The Guest Book is a dynamic, rotating group exhibition that reflects on creative gestures made in the Okanagan-Similkameen. The Guest Book includes 26 alumni of the Similkameen Artist Residency (SAR), featuring artworks made during or in response to their residency at SAR between 2021–23, and three Syilx-Okanagan artists. This exhibition reflects SAR’s gratitude for the artists who have shaped their identity as an organization, and for the communities and territories that surround and inspire us.
Mirroring the variable experience of attending the residency, small groupings of alumni artists’ work are installed for 1–2 weeks each, rotating throughout the exhibition. When developing this schedule, SAR curated groupings that encourage thematic and aesthetic conversations between artworks. These include performative processes in collaboration with nature; abstractions inspired by the landscape; the identities and regionalities of “home”; and processes of place. Instead of rotating like residency alumni works, Host Nation artists’ works stay in place throughout the exhibition, grounding the show and encouraging visitors to reflect on their relationship to the region. This curatorial decision is made out of respect for the Syilx-Okanagan people, who have created art on and tended to these lands since time immemorial.
Embodying SAR's goal of creating cross-regional dialogues, The Guest Book bridges local, national, and international artists. Through the showcased works, visitors will experience the energy of SAR, with each piece reflecting the unique perspectives and experiences of the artists who have contributed to our development. SAR is grateful for the opportunity to showcase these works, as each participating artist has been so generous in sharing their creativity with us.
On March 28 from 6-8pm, join us for an opening reception featuring light snacks and refreshments. This event is free and open to the public.
ROTATING SCHEDULE
WEEKS 1–6 | March 28–May 10
yutəlx Franchesca Raven Bell, Madeline Terbasket
On view for the duration of the exhibition, artworks by host nation artists ground the exhibition. Madeline Terbasket’s drag king persona Rez Daddy celebrates queer and two-spirit experience, and yutəlx Franchesca Raven Bell’s images integrate syilx cultural knowledge and reflect their ancestral territories.
WEEK 1 | March 29–April 5
Sidi Chen, Natasha Lavdovsky, Noelle Lee, Esteban Pérez, Andreas Rutkauskas, Niki Singleton, Isaiah Somsen
The exhibition opens with alumni artworks that explore collaborative, performance-based processes with and in nature. These works document human relationships with nature (on the land, with the land, of the land) and portray journalistic encounters with the region.
WEEK 2 | April 8–12
Laurence Belzile, Sidi Chen, Gemma Crowe, Esteban Pérez, Niki Singleton, Isaiah Somsen, Sherry Walchuk, Katherine Wilson
In week two, we see abstract impressions of the Okanagan-Similkameen. This suite of works includes strong textural interpretations that respond to and reflect the residency’s region. We see artists channeling the land, speaking to a particular time and place, and mapping memory.
WEEK 3 | April 15–19
Héloïse Auvray, Laurence Belzile, Alexandra Bischoff, Gemma Crowe, Jeff Hallbauer, Liz Toohey-Weise, Sherry Walchuk, Katherine Wilson, Ulrike Zöllner
Still speaking to abstraction, week three’s artworks move through imprints of place (memories, fuzzy or otherwise) and semiotics of place (the signs and symbols that represent the Okanagan-Similkameen). Here, we begin to consider abstract conceptions of home and the building of regional identities.
WEEK 4 | April 22–26
Héloïse Auvray, Alexandra Bischoff, Miriam Gil, Jeff Hallbauer, Emily Jayne May Myatt, Moe Pramanick, Liz Toohey-Weise, Marion Webber, Ulrike Zöllner
Week four marks a strong shift into the themes of home and identity, the building of these and their permeability. Processes of identity, of artmaking, and of where these intersect all contribute to the feelings of place and an urgency of being.
WEEK 5 | April 29–May 3
Maddie Alexander, Miriam Gil, Emily Jayne May Myatt, Sonny Park, Moe Pramanick, Lewis Reid, Eric Tkaczyk, Marion Webber, Julia Wong, Yasmine Whaley-Kalaora
All the artists in week five capture the mood of the region: the geography, meteorology, biology, entomology, and what else can be found around, and how these things affect the tone of the region and the ways in which artists make work here. There is a sincerity—and sometimes comedy—in these works, speaking to the processes of becoming one’s self.
WEEK 6 | May 6–10
Maddie Alexander, Sonny Park, Lewis Reid, Eric Tkaczyk, Julia Wong, Yasmine Whaley-Kalaora
Closing the exhibition, week six is a continuation of the themes in week five, only with a reduced number of works. This graduation mirrors the seasonal experience of attending the residency. We enter hibernation in November–December: the exodus of tourists quiets the community at large, and the snow and finite daylight of winter settle upon the valley.
Founded in 2021, the Similkameen Artist Residency (SAR) offers a tranquil, affordable, and supportive environment for artistic exploration in Keremeos, BC. As an artist-run residency program, we recognize that working artists face challenges when seeking dedicated time for their creative pursuits. Our inclusive program understands that all artists—including those at various career stages and across diverse artistic trajectories—should be given opportunities to rest and refocus their practices. Enhanced by an ethos of community, curiosity, and creative exchange, SAR’s self-directed residency structure fosters productive solo studio time and collegial, collaborative cohorts.
