Penticton teen artists showcase talent on city street banners

Teen artists in Penticton, B.C., are taking their creativity to the streets, in a bid to add some extra colour and vibrancy to the community.

Four students were selected by the city earlier this year to have their designs featured on street banners.

“I think it is really cool,” said artist Annabelle Ironside, 14. She created a banner featuring a succulent.

“My art teacher was teaching us how to use chalk pastel and I wanted to use that to make the art piece that I did.”

The selected students are part of a 10-week after-school program at the Penticton Art Gallery. The gallery said the city approached it with the opportunity as a way to showcase the strength of Penticton’s art scene, and encourage young artists to consider possible careers in a creative field.

“I think it is heartwarming to see our youth in here and so engaged, and it shows how alive art is with our youth, and that tells me how alive art is in our future,” said Jim Minshull, executive director of the Penticton Art Gallery.

With vineyards, greenery and lakes, the banners were inspired by Penticton’s natural beauty.

“We go outside, we take some pictures, some of them focused on landscaping, some of them focused on birds, some of them focused on the fish pond outside. So they generate their own ideas, and narrow it down to the certain size of the painting they would like to work with and then build technique using acrylic paint,” said art teacher Maggie Chow.

For teen artist Kai Halverson, fun, bright colours played a big role in her banner, which depicts sun and clouds over a horizon of green.

“When I was creating it, I wanted to create a very textured painting, like have lots of detail and have the whole painting be like textured so you can feel and see it,” the 16-year-old said.

The two other artists chosen for the initiative were Ayrlie Dennison, 16, and Elise Irwin, 13.

Organizers hope the after-school program will continue to be a safe outlet for teens in the community for years to come.

“Penticton has always been very popular with sport, but I think the visual art practice can be very inspiring for young kids, especially for those [who are] not particularly athletic,” Chow said.

The banners are now displayed on Lakeshore Drive, along Okanagan Lake.