Eva Antonel
It ’ s shaping up to be an exciting year no matter where you live in this vast country . From small town Manitoba to metropolitan centres like Vancouver , Toronto and Montreal , countless municipal , provincial and federal offices are busy polishing their last minute plans to commemorate Canada ' s 150th birthday in 2017 .
Windsor is no different . To add to the excitement , our fair city will also be celebrating its own 125th anniversary of incorporation . Where there is a birthday , there will always be cake . When you ' re a city or country , there will be thousands of cakes as well as exhibits , commemorative coins , projects , flag raisings , parades and maybe a painted face or two .
No matter how you feel about the arts , they often take centre stage when it comes to commemorative celebrations such as these . There seems to be no better way to acknowledge accomplishment and civic pride than by commissioning a painting , a photograph , a poem or a piece of music written just for the occasion . After consulting the official Canada 2017 and the City of Windsor websites , we found several art-based celebrations in the works for this coming year .
The local party is scheduled for Saturday , May 20 and promises " a vibrant festival of visual arts , music , theatre , dance , historical interpretation and storytelling , literary arts , film , food and more in and around Downtown Windsor ." The debut of a commemorative poem by Windsor ' s Poet Laureate , Marty Gervais , free admission to the Chimczuk Museum , an artist / artisan marketplace and a children ' s art zone round
out the art-based portion of the program .
Whether you agree or not , gardens are a work of art in the right hands . You need not look further than Dieppe Gardens and Coventry Gardens on the riverfront and the Queen Elizabeth gardens at Jackson Park to concede the argument . This spring , several city-owned gardens will feature the Canada150 tulip especially bred to represent our Maple Leaf flag with its striking red and white colouring . If you ' d like to plant some in your own garden come fall , visit your local Home Hardware stores which have been given exclusive rights of distribution .
The original Group of Seven is already a national treasure but this year Windsor has commissioned its own . A group of poets along with Windsor ' s Poet Laureate , Marty Gervais , have taken on the task of writing about the men and women , present and past , who have made our city what it is today . The plan is to have the poetry grace our cultural landscape and ultimately be published in a special volume by the local Black Moss Press . The poems will be unveiled throughout the year at various civic functions .
If you ' re a plein air painter , nature photographer or a writer who likes a quiet , outdoor space to people watch , don ' t forget that all national parks , including Point Pelee in Leamington , offer free admission during 2017 . Check out the details here .
Since 2008 , a fellow by the name of Tim Van Horn has been travelling the country and photographing everyday Canadians for his project called Canadian Mosaic . By the time the task is completed , he will have captured 54,000 faces or 1 per cent of the population , which will be embedded into a giant Maple Leaf flag . His project will be unveiled on Canada Day . Watch for it !
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March 2017 - The HUB 9