“Meet the Artists Night” Friday, June 14, 6pm-8pm

Posted on by Shavasana Art Gallery & Café

Shavasana Gallery & Café is hosting our first major Art Opening of the year on Friday, June 14, 6 to 8 pm. “Meet the Artists Night” gives you a great opportunity to mix and mingle with 10 of Mayne Island’s most talented artists, who are all exhibiting as part of our “Island Eclectic” exhibit.

Beautiful paintings, collages, multimedia, felt work, sculpture, photography, and carvings by island artists: Linda Church, Stephen Cropper, Ranjeet Dhaliwal, Famous Empty Sky, Tina Farmilo, Dell Maxwell, Bill Maylone, Wayne Thomas, Jody Waldie, and Robbin Yager will be available for viewing anytime between 6 and 8ish pm.

Please come on by and join us for a selection of appetizers, sweet treats, and fruit punch – coffee and tea will also be available.

Hope to see you all then!

Cheers!

George Bathgate

Curator, Artist, and a pretty good Barista

Shavasana Gallery & Café

Let the Summer Hours Begin!

Posted on by Shavasana Art Gallery & Café

OK, I might be a little optimistic to call them “summer hours” when, as I write this on April 30, it’s only 8 degrees outside, overcast and threatening rain…but I’m optimistic!

The Fall/Winter/Spring-ish season was good, managed to keep the hearth fires alive by coming over once or twice each month to open up, stir the embers, throw another log on the flames, and visit with my Mayne Island chums. The slower season also gave me more time to hang out with my partner Cathy, and with my Vancouver family, which includes my new grandson Mateo…he’s a cutie!

Mateo slurping a popsicle on a recent visit to Saltspring Island

May is also the beginning of our new show at Shavasana Gallery…the show is called “Island Eclectic” and features 9 of Mayne Islands most talented & creative artists. I am thrilled to be hosting & exhibiting their assembled brilliance😎…here’s a poster made recently by one of their talented lot – Bill Maylone – which will give you further details:

As mentioned at the outset, I am beginning my summer hours this weekend, so likely won’t be posting as much on this website or social media unless there is a change in my days/hours, or an event to announce (we are expecting to have a “Meet the Artist Night” on June 14…details to come) So, until further notice:

Hours of Operation:

Saturday 9am – 4pm

Sunday 10:15 – 4pm

Monday 9am – 4pm

Please come on by for a coffee or tea and a chance to view the 30+ pieces we have assembled for this show!😄

See you then!

George

SHAVASANA GALLERY & CAFÉ WILL BE OPENING Sat. Apr. 20, TIL MON. APR. 22

Posted on by Shavasana Art Gallery & Café

I’m just making arrangements to open Shavasana Gallery Café for what is, ostensibly, the last weekend of my slower Winter/Fall/Early Spring season. If my previous weekend over on Mayne for the “Made on Mayne” event was any indicator (Mar. 29 – Apr.1) it’s going to be a very busy “Summer Season” which, for me, runs May through October.

The current show, 9 of Mayne Islands most talented artists, in no particular order: Bill Maylone, Linda Church, Ranjeet Dhaliwal, Dell Maxwell, Stephen Cropper, Tina Farmilo, Jodie Waldie, Famous Empty Sky, and Robbin Yager (and I’ve thrown in a few of my pieces in an act of unabashed self-promotion🤣)

Shavasana Gallery has become a little cultural hub (if I may say so myself) with art, crafts, hot coffee, spirited conversations, and Monday afternoon jam sessions. A large part of the joy I receive when I open up my shop is visits by friends & off-island visitors who drop in – (kids and dogs – and yes, sometimes cats – are always welcome, and add their own brand of joy to an already happy mix…there are treats!)

Esnie Shum & Joseph Loh hanging out with the Smith grandkids

Hours of Operation:

Sat. April 20. 9am – 4pm

Sunday Apr. 21, 10:15am – 4pm

Monday Apr. 22, 9am – 4pm

Please drop by for a coffee and a chance to view all the beautiful art!

Cheers!

George

Shavasana Gallery & Café will be opening Fri. Mar. 29 til Mon. Apr. 1

Posted on by Shavasana Art Gallery & Café

Dear Friends…It’s Sunday March 24th and I’m sitting at my local Starbucks in Kitsilano – getting ready for my annual Just Push Play Theatre Society AGM https://justpushplayaudiomotion.wordpress.com/ (our 35th I believe) – and taking a little time, in what appears to be a very busy week coming up, to announce the “soft opening” of my new 2024 season at Shavasana Gallery & Café (my 11th!)

I’m coming over to participate in the bi-annual “Made on Mayne” event which is a really cool celebration of all things, “made on Mayne”…art, crafts, clothing, food – beer!…you name it, if it’s made on Mayne Island – we celebrate it, with a well-organized tour of all the local studios, shops, roadside stands, businesses & more! It’s a fun & informative couple of days with maps, websites & posters (thank you Arts on Mayne! https://www.artsontheislands.org/mayne.html ) and is definitely worth checking out👍

I’m changing my format this year – rather than the 4 or 5 rotating shows I’ve had in previous years (1 artist for 1 month) , I’ll be welcoming 5 new artists (Robbin Yagger, Linda Church, Ranjeet Dhaliwal, Dell Maxwell, and Stephen Cropper)and 4 returning artists (Famous Empty Sky, Bill Maylone, Tina Farmilo, and Jody Waldie) to join me for the Made on Mayne event, with the option to leave their art up or change it – as they see fit – throughout my May to October season. We are planning on having a “Meet the Artists” night sometime in June, the details of which are still to be determined, this may be followed-up with some kind of closing party at the end of season…also TBD.

I’m looking forward to hosting you all at next weekends “Made on Mayne Crawl”…drop in for a coffee and a chance to check out the fabulous talent we’ll be exhibiting!

Hours of Operation:

Friday March 29, 9am – 4pm

Saturday March 30, 9am – 4pm

Sunday March 31, 10:15 – 4pm

Monday April 1, 9am – 4pm

Hope to see you then!

Cheers!

George Bathgate

Shavasana Gallery & Café will be open this weekend, Sat., Feb. 10 – Mon. Feb. 12

Posted on by Shavasana Art Gallery & Café

After a rather long and unexpected hiatus, Shavasana Gallery & Café will be re-opening this coming weekend from Saturday Feb. 10, to Monday Feb. 12 9am til 4pm (except Sunday 10:15 til 4).

My intentions to open up in January, were thwarted by 2 weekends of snow and cold, and, that second winter wallop with temperatures below -12, wound up bursting some pipes requiring the honest & hardworking plumber, David Rae, to come around and work his magic. Long story short, I was unable to open up on my third weekend attempt in January until Dave got the wet stuff running again.

All is well now, and water – that essential ingredient for a good cup of coffee – will be flowing through the new pipes and taps again.

Please come on by!

Cheers!

George

Previous Show: Artist Deborah Strong, “Feather and Bone” Aug. 25 until Oct. 1

Posted on by Shavasana Art Gallery & Café

We had a lovely Art Opening on Friday Aug 25, with a well-attended appreciative crowd, enjoying Deborah’s beautiful selection of coloured-pencil drawings of Birds.

Black Oystercatcher, Great Horned Owl, Song Sparrow, House Wren, Kinglet and Swallow (click on the third photo to see a Kingfisher and a Downy Woodpecker)

Over the last several days since the Opening, I’ve had many guests drop in to admire Deborah’s exhibit, and some have compared her work to that of James Fenwick Lansdowne, and even John James Audubon – both of whom had a fascination with birds and an uncanny ability to capture them using only watercoulours, oils and – in Deborah’s case – coloured pencil on illustration board and clayboard cradled panel.

Yellow-Rumped Warbler (click on the photo to see a pair of Goldeneye Ducks, a Chickadee and House Wren), Swallows, Pileated Woodpecker, and Great Grey Owl

It seems that everyone has a favourite bird, or a fondness for a particular encounter with a feathered friend, which has been driving sales of particular bird species. I became fond of House Wrens when I put up a wooden bird box on the back of Shavasana Gallery about 7 years ago, which was promptly occupied by a little wren family who returned annually for many years to have their babies. In this exhibit, Deborah’s depictions of birds are species she has witnessed locally (with the exception of the Great Grey Owl).

Young Barred Owl, “The Watering Hole” with 9 different species of bird…and Deborah! On hanging day having some fun placing all the art with yours truly😊

Deborah’s show, “Feather and Bone” runs until October 1st – Don’t Miss It!

Shavasana Gallery & Café will be open this weekend – Fri. Dec 1, Sat Dec. 2, & Sun. Dec 3

Posted on by Shavasana Art Gallery & Café

Yes, Christmas is now officially less than a month away😱 I’m not sure how it’s possible that I’ve allowed myself to be busier now – in my “off season” – than I was during my regular May – October “summer season” (which also happened to be my busiest year yet at the Gallery) but here I am at 7pm Monday night, at a Starbucks in Kitsilano…updating my website to let everyone know about my upcoming weekend Hours of Operation.

I’m rambling…probably a little too caffeinated, which goes with the territory when one spends too much time in coffee shops doing online work😆. Anyways, I hope you are all well and that I have a chance to see you when I’m over on Mayne this weekend, and the coffee is hot and the Open sign is up👍

Hours of Operation:

Friday Dec. 1, 9am – 4pm

Saturday Dec 2, 9am – 4pm

Sunday Dec. 3, 10:15 – 2:30ish (leaving early to attend the Noonan/Heshedahl/Jackson concert at the Church)

Cheers!

George

Shavasana Gallery & Café will be open this weekend – Nov. 10 – 13 – for the Fall “Made on Mayne” event

Posted on by Shavasana Art Gallery & Café

Just a quick note to let you all know that I am intending to open up this coming weekend to participate in the bi-annual “Made on Mayne” event put on by the Southern Gulf Islands Arts Council – a fun event celebrating all things, “made on Mayne”.

Shavasana Art Gallery & Café hours:

Friday Nov. 10, 9am – 4pm

Saturday Nov. 11, 9am – 4pm

Sunday Nov. 12, 10:15am – 4pm

Monday Nov. 13, 9am – 4pm

Famous Empty Sky will be exhibiting some of her fascinating collage work, Bill Maylone will display some of his beautiful Suiseki rock creations with perhaps a painting or two, and there will be an eclectic mix of other artists and craftspersons – regional and local – showing off their creativity.

Come on by for a delicious coffee or tea and a yummy baked good while you take time to appreciate all the art & creativity that Mayne Island has to offer

Cheers!

George

Shavasana Gallery & Café will be open this weekend Sat. Oct. 21 – 23

Posted on by Shavasana Art Gallery & Café

I am now operating under my Fall/Winter schedule and will be open intermittently until about March, with an expectation to be open weekly by May 2024.

So…I will be open this coming weekend as follows:

Saturday Oct. 21 9am – 4pm

Sunday Oct. 22 10:15 – 4pm

Monday Oct. 23 9 – 4

There will be hot coffee and tea ad a selection of yummy cookies and squares – there will be art on display but it’s what I refer to as “The Show Between Shows”…a collection of art that will fill the walls until I sort out what’s happening in 2024 when – hopefully – regular art shows will recommence🙏

Hope to see you this weekend!

Cheers!

George

Art Opening! Jerryann Hamilton & Abigail Hain, “Textures of Mayne” Friday August 4th, 7 – 9

Posted on by Shavasana Art Gallery & Café

Yes! We are having and Art Opening for Jerryann Hamilton & Abigail Hain’s new show, “Textures of Mayne” on Friday August 4th between 7 and 9 pm.

Although Jerryann and I hung the show a few weeks ago, as a “soft-opening”, Abigail has been in Scotland so we’ve been awaiting her return to have our official “Meet the Artist” night this coming Friday.

Here are a few photos of the exhibit:

Just of a few examples of Abby’s & Jerryann’s varied talents working on fabric, paper, canvas & seashell!

Thus far, the show has been very well-received, by islanders and visitors as well. I am writing this from my home in Kitsilano, getting ready to head back to Mayne Island tomorrow to begin preparations for our Friday night event – which is in two days! Rumour has it that Abby’s husband Alistair is a great cook and will be preparing some of the food for our event…hopefully it doesn’t include fresh Haggis flown in from Scotland!

And here are a few more photos of this beautiful show:

Hope to see you Friday night! Cheers!