It’s been 90 years since Elizabeth McLeod of Mount Allison, Norman Hessler, former mayor of Sackville, and Mrs. Brunton joined together and founded the Sackville Art Association.
CHMA talked with Member Cathy Thurston this week about the opening of the show this Sunday at Owens Art Gallery and the history and mandate of the organization and how that has developed and changed through the years.
Cathy joined the group in her retirement and speaks of the association and all it does in glowing terms.
“It’s amazing to me how the collaborative, supportive, collegial atmospheres continued right from the get-go. The philosophy was: listen, we have to work together. We have to support each other. That’s still going on. And that’s why, when I retired, I joined the SAA and I just found these people are great.”
The association does great things in the community, as well, with bursaries and scholarships for local young artists heading to post-secondary programs and donations of art supplies to local elementary schools. They also place members’ works in the Sackville Hospital and other locations in the region.
The Annual Members’ Exhibition opens Sunday, November 2nd, at the Owens Art Gallery in Sackville, N.B., starting at 3:00 p.m. with a welcome and awards ceremony. The exhibition runs until Sunday, December 7th. Gallery hours are weekdays 10 to 5 and weekends 1 to 5.
