Comox Valley Arts

Jaques De Backer
2025-08-02 19:00 - 21:00, 2025-08-06 12:00 - 2025-08-29 17:00, 2025-08-07 12:00 - 2025-08-30 17:00, 2025-08-08 12:00 - 2025-08-31 17:00, 2025-08-09 12:00 - 2025-09-01 17:00, 2025-08-13 12:00 - 2025-09-05 17:00 (America/Vancouver) | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Jacques De Backer has filled the walls at Artful : The Gallery with colour and light through August 23. His iconic Cumberland alleyways, farm scenes and stunning cow portraits are interspersed with his wood sculptures and memories from a life lived globally. Jacques De Backer has been painting and sculpting since he retired 30 years ago, and he is a Comox Valley favourite, with other artists, and art collectors. The majority of the artworks are oil on canvas, with a wide range of sizes and prices to choose from. From small oil on panel studies for $50 to 3’ X 4’ scenic oil on canvas panoramas well priced at $2000. Artist reception Saturday, August 2, 7 to 9pm at Artful : The Gallery. 526C Cumberland Rd in Courtenay. Gallery hours Weds-Sat 12-5pm.

Jennifer Castle w/ Amy Muloin & The Alley Flowers w/ Pranatricks
2025-08-02 19:00 - 23:00 | Comox Valley Curling Centre, 4835 Headquarters Road, Courtenay, BC, V9J1P2, Canada
from Toronto, Paradise of Bachelors Recording Artists
JENNIFER CASTLE

with special guestsAmy Muloin & The Alley Flowersplus Cumberland’s Pranatricks
7 PM Saturday August 2Comox Valley Curling Centre4835 Headquarters RoadLicensed, all ages welcome until 10 PM.Tickets on Sale at Tickit and Eventbritehttps://cvgbs.tickit.ca/events/30100#t-4f916c0f3https://www.eventbrite.ca/…/jennifer-castle-w-amy-the…

JENNIFER CASTLEAs a singer, songwriter, and collaborator, Toronto native Jennifer Castle became a fixture of the city’s indie underground in the late 2000s, releasing introspective folk-oriented music first as Castlemusic and later under her own name, while also recording with a variety of outsider acts like Doug Paisley, U.S. Girls, Fucked Up, and Constantines. In later years, her music took on elements of light psychedelia and chamber pop, especially on 2014’s highly touted standout Pink City (shortlisted for the Polaris Prize for best album made in Canada). Castle introduced a fuller sound with country accents on 2018’s Angels of Death, then shifted gears into a spare, psychedelic folk-inspired approach for 2020’s Monarch Season. Her new album Camelot furthers her ambitious explorations into indie country folk, and received a massive 8 score from the influential Pitchfork. The first single Blowing Kisses was featured prominently in season three of the hit show The Bear. Jennifer will be touring with Destroyer this fall, in preparation she is playing a series of intimate BC concerts. Jennifer has been called ‘a national treasure” by multiple publications, the Comox Valley is in for a rare treat Saturday August 2.https://paradiseofbachelors.com/jennifer-castle/https://www.jennifercastlemusic.com/https://www.facebook.com/jennifercastlemusichttps://www.instagram.com/jnfrcastle/https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoaUJrAwmhFyWM9lV1j1eZw

AMY MULOIN AND THE ALLEY FLOWERS“Amy Muloin will make you want to quit your job and sing songs around campfires full time. Her soaring vocals and groovy rhythm guitar take you on adventures through creativity, love, and the pursuit of passion.” Amy Muloin and the Alley Flowers will be hustling directly from their show at the Filberg Festival to play a completely different and more adventurous set at the CV Curling Centre in support of Jennifer Castle.https://amymuloin.com/musichttps://www.instagram.com/amymuloin/https://amymuloin.bandcamp.com/track/underground-rough-mixhttps://www.facebook.com/CommonFolkAmyMuloinhttps://www.youtube.com/@amymuloinmusic

PRANATRICKSPranatricks is an Indie-Psych-Folk artist and multi-instrumentalist/producer now calling Cumberland home. His debut album ‘Cherished’ released in 2023 garnered several accolades including 11 weeks of charting on Earshot and significant appearances on the National Top 50 including a #1 at CJSF in Vancouver. The music blog Indie Boulevard named ‘Cherished’, Best Album of 2022. In April of 2024 Pranatricks released his second album ‘Elements of’ and was featured by Exclaim! as a part of their New Faves for June 2024 and one of 8 Emerging Canadian Artists You Need to Hear.https://www.facebook.com/Pranatrickshttps://www.instagram.com/pranatrickshttps://www.tiktok.com/@pranatrickshttps://pranatricks.com/

Double Duo Concert
2025-08-09 18:30 - 21:30 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Two dynamic Comox Valley Duos are coming together to perform at Artful : The Gallery on August 9. Doors at 6:30, and the show begins at 7pm. Duo #1 is Judy and Bruce Wing with their intertwined guitar parts that support their smooth vocals, evocative lyrics and percussive rhythms. Duo #2 is Dogwood Bloom, known for their soulful harmonies and heartfelt songwriting. Members Ashley Sykes and Shane Phillips are known for their warm and intimate live performances.

M/other Zine Workshop
2025-08-21 19:00 - 21:00 | Comox Valley Lifelong Learning Centre, 1507A McPhee Ave, Courtenay, BC, V9N 3A6, Canada
Come for two hours of creativity, and connection to generate a contribution to a local zine honoring the often invisible work of m/others and the concept of caregiving (See event photo for detailed project description).

– All materials will be supplied.
– There will be child-minding onsite and a
– Snacks, pizza and drinks will be provided!

***If you can’t attend the workshop, you can still contribute by sendingfiction, non-fiction, poetry, interviews, recipes, letters, book/website/blog reviews, comic strips, rants, day dreams, random lists, collage, art, drawings, art work and writing of any kind to: butchanko@hotmail.com
by September 15th, 2025

Intercultural Weaving Project @ 4 two 5 Studio
2025-08-25 13:00 - 15:00 | BC
An artistic space where local artists gather weekly to creatively weave visual and narrative threads, exploring and expressing intercultural stories through textiles and mixed media in a spirit of collaboration and shared learning.
Where & When

Venue: 4 two 5 Studio, Courtenay
Frequency: Weekly open studio sessions, drop‑in style
Duration: Mondays and Saturdays, August 25th – October 4th, 1-3pm

Why join in?

Experiment collaboratively in a supportive, low-pressure environment
Share and learn from diverse materials, techniques, and cultural stories
Partner with CV/Arts, whose mission emphasizes equity, inclusivity, accessibility, and community engaged artistic practice

What’s provided

All weaving materials tools will be supplied. There is no need to bring materials unless they are specific to your project
Optional: bring a memory, poem, personal story, or cultural theme you’d like to visually

Who’s welcome

Artists of all experience levels and cultural backgrounds.
Whether you’re into textiles, visual arts, craft, story-based media, or if you’re simply curious and creatively inclined, you belong here.

How to sign up

Please email: ameet@ameetart.com. Include:

A brief description of your artistic practice and interest in the project.
Which weekly sessions you can attend and any accessibility accommodations you may require.

Intercultural Weaving Project @ 4 two 5 Studio
2025-08-30 13:00 - 15:00 | 4 Two 5 Studio, Courtenay, BC, Canada

Dead Soft w/ Electric Brains w/ KCAR
2025-08-30 18:00 - 22:00 | Comox Valley Curling Centre, 4835 Headquarters Road, Courtenay, BC, V9J1P2, Canada
CVGBs presents:A triple of bill of summer cool

from Vancouver/Gabriola Island, Arts & Crafts Recording ArtistsDEAD SOFT

from Powell River, featuring member of Ladyhawk/Baptists/HaggathaELECTRIC BRAINS

From Vancouver, featuring member of Pink Mountaintops/Radio BerlinKCAR

Licensed, all ages welcome.
* Monthly Roller Disco night at the CVCC will be in happening at the same time! Come see some great music, and skate your face off!

DEAD SOFTEmerging from British Columbia’s indie underground in the early 2010s, Dead Soft is a grunge-punk band known for their fuzzed-out, intense rock sound infused with melodic sensibility and introspective lyrics. Nathaniel Epp (vocals, guitar) and Keeley Rochon (bass, vocals) hail from the small northern town of Prince Rupert, where their early musical influences included ’90s indie rock and artists like Elliott Smith and the Replacements. After moving south to Victoria, they officially formed Dead Soft in 2011 before relocating to Vancouver. The band released a self-titled debut album in 2014 and built a reputation through relentless touring and a series of acclaimed EPs.
In 2018, Dead Soft signed with the prominent Toronto label Arts + Crafts, releasing the New Emotion EP and their widely visible second LP, Big Blue (2019), which showcased a heavier fuzz-pop sound and themes of personal transformation. Recently, the band wrapped up recording their third full-length album and are preparing for its upcoming release, promising to deliver another powerful chapter in their evolving grunge-punk journey.https://www.instagram.com/deadsofties/https://www.facebook.com/deadsofties/https://deadsoft.bandcamp.com/https://www.youtube.com/@DeadSoftMusichttps://www.arts-crafts.ca/artists/dead-soft.htmlhttps://www.westerlyrecords.com/dead-soft

ELECTRIC BRAINSPower pop, punk rock and roll from qathet BC! Anyone fortunate enough to catch the sold out Dead Bob show last year at the Waverly will recall the rawkus punk rock celebration that was the opening act Electric Brains (then called the Kicks) who worked the room into a frenzy. Electric Brains count among their members a certain Sean Hawryluk, a crucial member of both Kelowna/Vancouver’s legendary Ladyhawk, and then hardcore metal pathcutters Baptists.https://open.spotify.com/artist/6YHbb1RXqz1WvSsAhWQzET…https://www.instagram.com/electric__brains/

KCARKCAR is Fiona, Jenni and Lyndsay from Vancouver! KCAR play catchy, art punky tunes, they’re all tuff moms who enjoy long walks on the beach, romantic dinners for three and ripping dinks!KCAR have played and toured in many bands over the years, including Hard Drugs, Radio Berlin, Pink Mountaintops and Le Petit Mort.Find KCAR’s albums THREE and UP TOP on Bandcamp and streaming services.https://kcar.bandcamp.com/https://www.instagram.com/kcarband/

Familiar Monsters of the Flood - Author reading Tia McLennan
2025-09-18 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Tia McLennan’s (she/her) poetry has appeared in various Canadian literary journals including Riddle Fence, Vallum, Arc, CV2, Room, and Prairie Fire. In 2022, she won the NLCU Fresh Fish Award for her unpublished poetry manuscript. She holds an interdisciplinary MFA in creative writing and visual art from UBC Okanagan, and a BFA from Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University. Originally from so-called Vancouver Island, B.C., (territory of the K’ómoks people), she now gratefully resides in kalpilin (Pender Harbour), B.C. with her partner, their 5-year-old son and their very large gray and white gentleman cat named Basho.
The poems in Familiar Monsters of the Flood speak to each other through an invisible connective tissue that weaves together dream space, loss, childhood memory, motherhood, the domestic-gothic, medical-speak, and life’s inevitable bureaucracies. These poems share an uneasiness and a foreboding. In these pages it becomes impossible to distinguish between the grief in losing a father, in losing multiple pregnancies, and in losing the planet as we know it to our own destruction. Throughout the deluge of loss, Tia McLennan’s stunning debut collection of poetry is grounded in wonder, the surreal, and the hope gleaned from those peculiar moments that can stop us in our tracks and, for a moment, make us fully present.
“Tia McLennan’s poems are poised at the quick of existence, acutely haunted by both memory and dream, at once familiar and monstrous. The effect is an embodied wisdom-in-progress: startling, revelatory and essential reading.”
—DON MCKAY, author of Lurch
“Tia McLennan’s Familiar Monsters of the Flood is a visceral and wondrous collection that explores the fragility of existence. A spider caught and released. A heartbeat on an ultrasound. Micro-plastics choking the ocean. This is the poetry of the quotidian and the profound, exquisitely noticed and precisely rendered. McLennan’s words are a balm.”
—SHARON BALA, author of The Boat People
“These poems are by turns tender, surreal, disorienting, quietly devastating, and shot through with a ferocious wonder. They inhabit the shimmering logic of dreams and grief, reaching simultaneously towards the death of a father, the birth of an infant, and six miscarriages between. This writing challenges what we know of boundaries between the dead and living, mythical and medical, personal and ecological, between fetal cells and a birthing parent’s body. Visceral individual losses are held in the larger container of destabilizing ecological grief—pipeline hearings, polar vortexes, heat domes, shellfish cooked alive in healing oceans, sun the colour of salmon roe, smoke-filled air. A series of spare found poems, taken from the text of medical records, creates a recurring chorus of cumulative loss. This stunning first collection ‘monsters the familiar,’ and offers a path for being present with the world in times of great grief and wonder.”
—ANNA SWANSON, author of The Nights Also

Siobhán Humston Open Studio & Artist Talk
2025-09-29 12:00 - 14:00 | The Jeffrey Rubinoff Sculpture Park, 2750 Shingle Spit Road, Hornby Island, BC, V0R1Z0, Canada
Come by the Jeffrey Rubinoff Sculpture Park on Monday, September 29th for a complimentary cup of coffee and creative conversation amidst artist Siobhán Humston’s latest works-in-progress. Her completed works will be exhibited at the University of Victoria in October.
Humston is the inaugural Artist in Resident between UVIC and the JRSP.

Doors at 12pm, Talk and Presentation starts at 12:30pm. All Welcome.
Address: 2750 Shingle Spit Road Hornby Island, BC, Canada, V0R1Z0
*Please park in the lot and walk up to the Barn.

Artful : The Poets
2025-10-06 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Join host Dan Kirk on October 6th with our feature poet Lorraine Martinuik. Feature poet followed by open mic, sign up at the door (5 mins each spot).
Lorraine Martinuik’s poetry and experimental prose has appeared in literary journals such as Island, The Capilano Review, The Normal School and Truck, as well as several anthologies such as Kitchen Talk and Drift (edited by Ed Varney and Dan Kirk). In 1989, she was awarded a Canada Council grant, for an experimental fiction project that dealt in part with narrative structure.
Martinuik was born in northern Alberta; she grew up in B.C.’s Peace River district, and later in the Fraser Valley. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design, a B.A. in English from the University of British Columbia, and an MFA in poetry from the University of New Orleans. Her MFA thesis, The Language of Trees was awarded the Cassin Prize for Poetry.
She has been based on Denman Island since 1980, when she bought a piece of raw land and built the studio cottage where she now lives and works.

Spirits of the Forest ~ Stumps and Stitches
2025-10-25 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Join artist Sue Muirhead at the artist reception to celebrate the opening of her exhibition.
Sue Muirhead is a lover of deep connection, the wild, windy world, and passionate, soulful creating of all kinds. Sue began an exploration into a variety of art forms in the early 2000’s. She found great pleasure in putting colour and form on paper. Over time, ‘process art’—art without an investment in the outcome—has become one of her most enlivening ways of expressing and processing her thoughts and feelings. Sue expresses creatively for the joy and the full bodied aliveness she feels when she engages her creative spirit.

Over the last year she has shifted mediums and now has become a ‘process stitcher’ where she stitches for the sheer pleasure of expressing. Sue is calling this show ‘Spirits of the Forest – Stumps and Stitches”. Sue shares, “When I walk in the woods, my soul, the essence of me, connects deeply to what surrounds me.” Stumps fascinate her, pull her in, capture her attention.

When in the forest and amongst the trees and stumps she often feels the presence of spirits. Most cultures in the world, at some time in their history to present day, have honoured, feared, and/or held in high esteem the many spirits of the forest and believe that they exist. Forest spirits are often thought of as protectors, keepers or guardians of the woodlands.

Sue thinks of stumps as teachers – often cut down, taken out, they sit benevolently in the forest, in clear cuts, sometimes looking bedraggled or barren; forever changed from what they once were. Given time, however, new life begins to form and they can become a haven for new growth, incomprehensible beauty. They teach that it is possible to be cut down in life by circumstances beyond our control, and over time there is the possibility of innovative beauty and renewed life.

For this show, Sue and her brother, Patrick Hill, went out into the forests around where they live and took over 200 pictures of stumps. Sue then took up what she now calls “Process Stitching” (an approach borrowed from Process Painting), where she stitched with no investment in a predetermined outcome , emphasizing exploration, experimentation and self expression. She called on the stitches to make visible, to
embody as much as possible the spirits of the forest. When stitching, Sue states she “feels the fabric and thread as living beings, alive.” Embroiderer Christi Johnson (2021) offers, “The creative process is not simply about what is being made; it is an entirely mystical process that teaches us how to move between the internal world of the soul and the physical world outside….Embroidery offers an opportunity to return to the natural order. Stitching by hand slows down the body and, over time slows down the mind.”

The essence of Spirits of the Forest – Stumps and Stitches is a full engagement of Sue’s creative energy and love. When engaged with her creative spirit and the wild world that surrounds her she shares, “I feel the wind, I feel the moonlight, I feel the spirits in the forest…and my hands stitch and stitch and stitch…”

The 5th Annual Comox Valley Record Show
2025-10-26 11:00 - 16:00 | Comox Valley Curling Centre, 4835 Headquarters Road, Courtenay, BC, V9J1P2, Canada
Vinyl lovers, collectors, and music enthusiasts, mark your calendars! The 5th Annual Comox Valley Record Show is set to groove its way back into town on Sunday, October 26, 2025, from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM at the Comox Valley Curling Centre, located at 4835 Headquarters Road, Courtenay.
This beloved event brings together dealers from across Vancouver Island and the Mainland, offering thousands of records spanning every genre imaginable—from classic rock and jazz to punk, soul, and beyond. But it’s not just vinyl: attendees will also find posters, books, CDs, tapes, and other music memorabilia to explore.
What to Expect:
A spacious venue filled with vibrant energy and rare finds
Food and drinks available on-site, including
Elevator access and plenty of free parking
Friendly vendors and fellow music fans ready to share stories and swap treasures
Tips for Attendees:
Prefer a quieter browsing experience? Arrive later in the day (2 to 4 PM)
Bring cash—while vendors increasingly accept digital payments, vinyl culture still loves the old-school paper vibe.
Come prepared to dig deep—hidden gems await!
Whether you’re a seasoned collector or just starting your vinyl journey, the Comox Valley Record Show is a can’t-miss celebration of music, nostalgia, and community. As the organizers say, “It’s like Christmas—it comes but once a year!”
Admission is still only $2 and kids under 12 are free. Lots of parking and the kitchen and Extra End Lounge will be open, not to mention curling to watch alongside the record show.

Artful : The Poets
2025-11-03 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Join host Natalie Nickerson on November 3rd with our feature poet Toni Dunne. Feature poet followed by open mic, sign up at the door (5 mins each spot).
Toni Dunne is an earthen creatrix, eco-sensualist, social butterfly, silly goose. Her poetry is inspired by paradox, the stretchy, crunchy, achy beautiful journey of the human condition. She weaves her observations of the mundane with the miraculous and makes room for many truths.
Born of her love for the garden, forest, river, mountain and sea, her poetry emphasizes and explores relationship with the natural world. A long time yogini and embodied mindfulness practitioner, Toni infuses her craft with a certain quality of attention and attends to her life, garden and writing as an ongoing practice of noticing and being with.
Her most beloved muse is the clawfoot tub in the yard.
When she’s not writing poetry or in the bath, Toni can be found playing with her 10 year old son and ragdoll cat. She works as a teacher, group facilitator, somatic therapist and gardener in the Comox Valley, a place she has called home for over 20 years.
Please join Toni as she midwives you through the seasons of cycles of the Pacific Northwest, seduces you into the luscious world of petal, stamen, bloom and decay.
Come enliven your senses and remember the magic you are embedded in.

Poetry Reading at Artful : The Gallery
2025-11-07 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Artful : The Gallery welcomes Damian John for an evening of poetry.

Poets Kelly Madden and Kristina Campbell will start the evening off, and Damian John will be the featured artist.

Poetry Reading and Book Launch
2025-11-13 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
On Nov 13, Arleen Paré and Wendy Donawa are hosting a poetry reading as they launch their recently published poetry collections Encrypted (published by Caitlin Press) and The Time of Falling Apart (Harbour Publishing) respectively.
Arleen Paré is a Victoria writer with ten collections of poetry, one chapbook and one co-edited anthology. She’s been short-listed for the Dorothy Livesay BC Award, and has won the Victoria Butler Book Prize, a CBC Bookie Prize, the bpnichol Chapbook Award, the American Golden Crown Award for Lesbian Poetry, twice, and a Governor Generals’ Award for Poetry. She lives with her wife, Chris Fox, in Victoria on the traditional lands of the Coast Salish people.

Wendy Donawa was raised in Victoria, but spent 36 years of her adult life in Barbados, where she raised her family, studied at the university of the West Indies, taught at the college and was for a decade, a curator at the Barbados Museum.
Now retired from the academic life, she lives gratefully on the traditional unceded territories of the Lekwungen-speaking Songees and Esquimalt nations, in Victoria.

Here, her heart and mind have turned to poetry, and she is grateful for the gifted and generous teachings Patrick Lane, Lorna Crozier, and many others. Her poems appear in numerous chapbooks, anthologies and poetry magazines. Her first book, Thin Air of the Knowable, was long-listed for the Raymond Souster and a finalist for the Gerald Lambert Award. Her second book, Our Bodies’ Unanswered Questions, was one of the 2021 Frontenac quartet. The Time of Falling Apart is her third collection.

Improbable Objects Artist Reception
2025-11-29 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Five pillars of the Comox Valley Art scene are collaborating to bring their varied artistic endeavours to Artful : The Gallery with the exhibition “Improbable Objects”. Collaborating for inspiration has always been a productive creative strategy, and this exhibition reflects the varied sensibilities of the artists: Ed Varney, Marci Katz, Martha Jablonski-Jones, Jeff Hartbower and Bill Friesen.

The absurdity and illogical scenes of Surrealism and Dadaism led the to the overall theme for this exhibition. From there, each artist followed their own creative path into the dreamlike imagery. The broad variety of artistic expression utilized by this group of artists includes printmaking, collage, painting, sculpture, drawings, paintings and contributes to the unexpected juxtapositions created by their artworks. The result is a playful exhibition of contrasts with bizarre and uncanny combinations to stimulate the unconscious; the ultimate source of creative freedom.

“Improbable Objects” runs at Artful : The Gallery November 26 thru December 20. Join us for the Artist Reception, Saturday, November 29th, 7-9 pm. Regular gallery hours are Weds to Sat, 12-5pm. The gallery is located at 526C Cumberland Rd, in Courtenay.

Artful : The Poets featuring Pam Stewart
2025-12-01 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Join host Steven J. Thompson as he welcomes our feature poet Pam Stewart from Victoria, BC. Pam Stewart writes about change and self-acceptance, the beauty and the not so. She’s a performer, facilitator and event producer. A former Victoria slam champion, she got her start in spoken word before publishing a book of personal essays, I Really Thought It Would Be Easier Than This, in 2019. She represented Victoria at the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word four times, twice at the Canadian Individual Poetry Slam, was once a frequent contributor to Elephant Journal, and was the first and only Riot Grrrls Poet in Residence. To see her perform live is to feel it.
Stewart’s feature spot will be followed by an open mic. Sign up at the door for the open mic, 5 minutes max per poet, $10 or pwyc.

Solstice Singalong
2025-12-13 10:30 - 11:30, 2025-12-20 10:30 - 11:30 | St. Georges United Church, 505 6th Street, Courtenay, BC, V9N 1M5, Canada
Celebrate the magic of the season with a joyful community singalong! Join Teacher Zoë for a cozy 45-minute Music Together® session filled with songs, movement, and musical play to welcome wintertime. Whether you’re a returning family or new to our classes, this is a chance to reconnect, make music together, and share in the warmth of community as we head into the new year.
These singalongs are also a sneak peek of what’s to come—Music Together® classes are returning in January at our new central location in Downtown Courtenay!
Each singalong event will be geared towards families with children 0-7, but older children are welcome too.
👉 Register by emailing thesqueakywheelcreative@gmail.com

Artful : The Poets
2026-02-02 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Join host Steven J. Thompson as he welcomes our feature poet Jeremy Loveday. Jeremy’s feature spot will be followed by an open mic. Sign up at the door for the open mic, 5 minutes max per poet, $10 or pwyc.
Jeremy Loveday is a poet, arts educator, and community builder from Victoria, BC, on the territory of the lәk’wәŋәn People. He founded and served as the longtime artistic director of the Victorious Voices youth poetry festival. Jeremy’s dynamic performances earned him the title of Victoria Poetry Slam Grand Champion three times. In 2020, he was honoured with the Zaccheus Jackson Nyce Memorial Award. His work has been published in reputable platforms such as Huffington Post, CV2, Funicular Magazine, National Observer, CBC, Claudia, and Best Canadian Poetry 2023.
Loveday’s performance to celebrate his Book Release:
Maybe the Starling, the debut full-length collection from award-winning poet and dynamic spoken word performer Jeremy Loveday, invites us to explore the intersections of crisis and care, grief and joy—a testament to poetry’s power to ignite change and nurture the human spirit.
In a world marked by inequity and climate crisis, Maybe the Starling is a poetic response to uncertainty, confronting urgent questions while offering both salve and spark. Rooted in a deep love for the land and an abiding wonder for nature’s abundance, these poems illuminate the ways we belong to each other and the world around us.
From mosh pits and Elvis impersonators to the quiet patience of growing food, these poems refuse to turn away from contradiction—they embrace it. Maybe the Starling offers both comfort and challenge, reminding us that poetry is a powerful call to wonder, to witness, and to action.

Friday I'm in Love! A Tribute to The Cure & other New Wave/Goth Favs
2026-02-13 18:30 - 22:30 | Comox Valley Curling Centre, 4835 Headquarters Road, Courtenay, BC, V9J1P2, Canada
12 Vancouver Island original musical acts each playing 12 minute sets of their interpretations of songs by The Cure and other New Wave/Goth/Dark wave/post-punk icons from that amazing 80s musical era.
Including: Amy Muloin & the Alley Flowers, Avro, Bath Slut, Night Mirrors, Pink Plagues, Pranatricks, Rudeboy, Short Circuit, Soft Top, Sonder, Trip Sitters, & Valley Edge Choir.
Plus drag performances by Kara Nedge and Rat King!
CVGBs returns with their third fundraiser tribute show. After sold out events honouring and re-imagining the music of first Nirvana in 2023, then David Bowie in 2024, this coming Friday the 13th of February takes a bit of a detour with the music of the Cure, mixed with the anthems of other New Wave/Goth/Dark wave/post-punk icons from that amazing 80s musical era. The concept is the same: A dozen radically different Vancouver Island original acts will do twelve-minute sets with the intent to play songs they love, but not necessarily as you might expect them to sound. These are not straight cover versions! The musical acts are all donating 100% of their performance funds towards Foundry Comox Valley, a safe space where youth can get free, confidential help and support, without judgement. https://foundrybc.ca/centre/comox-valley/

Eros & Psyche
2026-02-18 12:00 - 2026-03-14 17:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Eros and Psyche brings together the work of eight BC artists exploring sexuality, intimacy, love and desire as vital forces in human life.
Drawing from the Greek myth of Eros and Psyche, the exhibition considers erotic desire not only as romance or sexuality, but as a generative energy that shapes creativity, relationships and personal transformation. In the myth, Eros embodies desire while Psyche represents the human soul. Their love begins in darkness, without knowledge or awareness. When Psyche dares to look at Eros, she breaks the spell of unconscious union and is forced into a series of trials. This journey marks a movement from innocence to awareness, from blind love to conscious relationship. Psyche’s story suggests that love, and the soul itself, must mature through curiosity, loss, endurance and growth.
Psychologically, Eros can be understood as libido: a life force that drives creativity, connection, sensuality and curiosity. Libido is not limited to sexual desire alone, but describes the energy that compels us to make, to love, and to reach toward others. In this sense, artistic creation is deeply erotic; it is the act of giving form to inner impulses and lived experience.
Within North American culture, sexuality is often narrowly defined by ideals shaped by religion, youthfulness, and moral restraint. Aging bodies, spiritual sensuality, and expressions of desire that fall outside accepted norms are frequently marginalized or ignored. The artists in Eros and Psyche challenge these limitations by presenting desire as expansive, enduring and deeply human. Their works suggest that libido does not disappear with age or devotion, but evolves; remaining present through change, vulnerability and transformation.
Each artist approaches these themes through a distinct artistic practice, reflecting the many ways love and sexuality are experienced. Across materials, forms and gestures, the exhibition reveals desire as plural rather than singular; sometimes tender, sometimes fractured, sometimes quiet or overwhelming. Together, these works form a shared meditation on intimacy as something deeply personal, yet universally felt.
Eros and Psyche invites viewers to consider love and sexuality as ongoing processes rather than fixed states. Like Psyche, we are shaped by what we desire and by the risks we take in bringing those desires into awareness. In honouring libido as a life force, the exhibition affirms creativity as a space where instinct, consciousness, body and soul meet—and where transformation remains possible.
Three Comox Valley Poets bring their erotic poetic selves to celebrate the opening of the “Eros & Psyche” exhibition at Artful : The Gallery. The Artist Reception will begin with poetic performances by Liza Hughes, Joanna Finch and Toni Dunne, on Saturday, Feb 21, 7-8pm ($20 or pwyc). The evening will conclude with the artist reception for the exhibition featuring the work of artists Tessa Nunn (Comox Valley), Annette Nieukerk (Sunshine Coast), Joyce Ozier (Sunshine Coast), Tannis Hopkins (Sunshine Coast), Matthew Hildebrandt (Salt Spring Island), Nicky Evans (Sunshine Coast), Gary Dillon (Gabriola Island) and Rosemary Burden (Sunshine Coast). Exhibition runs Feb 18 thru March 14 at Artful : The Gallery. Regular Gallery hours Weds to Sat 12-5pm.

Stir the Pot at The Courtenay and District Museum
2026-02-21 11:00 - 13:00 | the Courtenay and District Museum, 207 4th St, Courtenay, BC, COURTENAY, BC, V9N 1G7, Canada
The 2026 BC Heritage Week Theme, Stir the Pot, is an open invitation to celebrate food as a form of heritage that is both personal and widely shared.
That means it is time to get your soup recipes ready! The Courtenay Museum is hosting a drop-in recipe sharing table on Saturday, February 21 from 11:00 AM until 1:00 PM.
Bring an easy-to-read copy of your favourite French onion or grandma’s minestrone, and the museum will make photocopies for everyone to share and take home.
If you’re unavailable but would still like to contribute, feel free to submit your soup recipes before hand to info@courtenaymuseum.ca and staff will include your printouts. The museum will also be supplying a few complimentary recipes from the archival collection.
The Courtenay and District Museum is located at 207 4th Street in downtown Courtenay.
FMI: 250-334-0686 ext 2.

Maureen F. Fitzgerald PHD Book Launch for "Wake the F Up"
2026-02-26 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Join Author Maureen Fitzgerald PhD as she launches her latest publication, “Wake the F Up – the Essential Guide to Spiritual Awakening and Freedom”. The evening will include a presentation from the author, opportunity to purchase her book and a reception to follow.

Every mystic has said the same thing: We can only end suffering and be truly happy if we wake up. But how do we do this?

In her engaging presentation, Maureen will describe her five-step process to awakening from an egoic-state of consciousness to awake awareness. You will learn how to use your life difficulties for opportunities to realize your True Self and:

 transcend the limits of your egoic mind;
 loosen the limiting beliefs in your shadow; and
 unlock the freedom and peace that is already within you.

Fitzgerald combines Western psychology and Eastern philosophy while referring to the words of the mystics including Eckhart Tolle, Byron Katie, Michael Singer, Loch Kelly, Adyashanti and Osho.

Come and learn how to raise your consciousness and move from a place of darkness and ignorance to a time of abundance and freedom.

As Eckhart Tolle says: “Your main purpose is to awaken. It is as simple as that. You share that purpose with every other person on this planet – because it is the purpose of humanity.”

Carys Owen "Love Letter to a Bee" Poetry Reading and Book Launch with musical guests Circle Complex
2026-02-27 19:00 - 21:00 | Artful the Gallery, 526 Cumberland Rd, Courtenay, BC, V9N 2C7
Carys Owen is a poet, educator, community builder and nature-lover who respectfully lives on the unceded territory of the K’omoks people. Her office is on the beach, by the river, in the forest, near a mountain.
For several years she has been sharing her poems at readings, community events and in her first poetry collection – Into the Ordinary. In 2023, Carys helped to create the Downtown Courtenay Poetry Walk. This public art project is now in its fourth year. It pairs poets with businesses resulting in a display of poetry on store front windows during National Poetry Month (April).
Carys’s poetry has been read at conferences and meetings to illustrate the life of various organizations, for example the BC Teacher’s Reading Conference, Lush Valley Food Action Society and CV Rotary Club. She is also very proud to have performed her poetry at Pride in the Park in Courtenay, BC. Carys is a founding member of ‘Artful : The Poets’ who meet once a month to share their poetry at ‘Artful : The Gallery’, Courtenay BC. She also helps to organize ‘Wordsmiths’, a group of poets, writers and singers in Cumberland, BC.
Her new collection of poetry – ‘Love Letter to a Bee’- explores the beauties of the natural world alongside the importance of caring for our environment.She is mindful of creating poems that celebrate the wonders of the natural world with the aim of encouraging connection and hope.
