Wasagaming Community Arts celebrating 55 years of shaping arts community

Ken Romaniuk talks about their community gallery’s tribute to founders and ongoing children’s workshops this summer.

Wasagaming Community Arts—an art centre and gallery in Riding Mountain National Park – is celebrating 55 years by paying tribute to its founders.

Close friends and artists Edythe Holden and Joyce Smedegaard started the gallery in 1970 to teach, create and promote art.

More than five decades later, Wasagaming Community Arts continues to offer art classes, as well as exhibitions throughout the summer that feature local and Canadian artists.

“For many of our artists, we may be their first exhibition,” said Ken Romaniuk, president of Wasagaming Community Arts, in an interview with CTV Morning Live on Thursday.

“So, we’ve been a training area for artists to come and learn and then to showcase their works.”

To mark the major milestone, the art centre is hosting a tribute exhibition that features Holden’s and Smedegaard’s artwork.

The tribute exhibition will be open throughout the summer.

• With files from CTV’s Ainsley McPhail.