60 years of art celebrated in 60 Central Okanagan venues

WEST KELOWNA — They say the eyes are the window to the soul and if that’s true, look deep into portraits painted by West Kelowna’s Kyla Shields and you’ll see soulful connections to musicians, singers and animals.

Shields, a young West Kelowna First Nation artist, has an uncanny talent to evoke feeling through the eyes of her subjects.

But while the 19-year-old is a member of the WFN, her art is personal and less traditional native art.

“I try to step away from what people think of as traditional artists,” says Shields.

“Yes I’m a First Nation artist, but it’s kind of a stereotype to think all First Nations artists do First Nations art. So this is a different way that I can express that.”

Get daily National news

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Shields is enjoying her first career exhibit at the Two Eagles Golf Club in West Kelowna as part of a larger celebration of Central Okanagan art called ’60 Artists in 60 Spaces’, a celebration of the 60^th anniversary of the Arts Council of the Central Okanagan.

“Our buildings are art, our clothes are art, the art of speaking, television, it’s all art,” says Central Okanagan Arts Council Executive Director Elke Lange.

“We thought we’d like to celebrate that.”

The innovate exhibition will see local artists featured in banks, shops and restaurants in Peachland, West Kelowna, Kelowna and Lake Country until September 27^th.

The Westbank First Nation has chosen 12 of their contributing community artists like Shields to display their work.

“Some of our elders have very particular pieces that stem from the traditional where some of the youth are really surreal and really fun and very modern,” says WFN Heritage Repository Curator and Heritage Officer Tracy Satin.

“There’s a span which is great to showcase the entire capabilities and artistic skills of the community here.”

The Arts Council looks forward to bringing the community closer to local artistic expressions outside a gallery environment.

“We develop through the arts and I think it’s important that people realize that the arts are just as important as any other aspect of our life so we become whole,” says Lange.

Details of the exhibit can be found at www.artsco.ca. The Westbank First Nation will hold a wrap up party at the Two Eagles Golf Club September 28^th from 4 -7 p.m, which is open to the public.