Studio Fair, presented by the Prince George & District Community Arts Council, has already seen thousands of people come into CN Centre on Friday and there’s still time to check the almost 300 vendors on site as the event continues Saturday and Sunday.
Roman Muntener is a local artist who is showcasing his woodworking skills at Studio Fair for the first time.
He’s been at other fairs but not one quite as big as this one.
You might have seen – and smiled because of it – his metal public art called Commotion at the Gateway to Prince George at the corner of 20 Avenue and Victoria Street. It includes many life-size silhouette’s of people doing cartwheels – it’s very happy and Roman is always glad to see when people have adorned the sculpture with hats on heads and scarves round necks.
For his showcased work at Studio Fair Muntener turned to his woodworking skills with a bit of his metal work (for the handles) built into the pieces like salmon planks, charcuterie boards and cutting boards, there’s also wooden vases and a stunning computer desk. The pieces he’s created feature live-edges and rustic knots that highlight the beauty and uniqueness of the wood.
“I use found wood and if I know of someone taking down a tree that is usable I will do that instead of chopping things up,” Muntener said. “But then I also do buying trips down to the sunshine coast where they have wonderful maple. Mostly what we get here is fir, birch and pine, which is good but if you want to make it a bit more interesting I can make a composition of different types of wood and salvage wood – I created the fish all with salvage wood.”
Muntener put his hands on a board with great character in it, there was a huge knot on the side, and the live edge on the other and it was clear that he loves his woodworking.
“There is life in wood,” Muntener smiled. “Even when it’s used to build something. You know when you hear your house creak in the winter, it’s not dead, wood is a live thing of nature, which I love.”
Strolling down the many aisles within CN Centre there was a beautiful display of skillfully lit translucent bottles of vinegar and the whole display just glowed.
Bree Eagle, who said she hit the name lottery with that one, and I think she’s right, is Salt Spring Island Vinegar and shares with her customers all her hard work.
“It’s called double fermentation – it’s a traditional process – so I make a wine first and they are created from blackberries or raspberries or plums, whatever I can get my hands on and then after it’s turned to alcohol I do a secondary fermentation which changes the alcohol to acidic acid – that takes about six months from start to finish and the entire process can take a year or more to go from fruit to vinegar,” Eagle said. It’s slow and frustrating with a nice end result.”
Eagle makes wine vinegars that are unsweetened and really great for cooking, she added.
“People use them in marinades and sauces and vinaigrettes and even soup,” Eagle said. The balsamic vinegars are more popular because they have a little bit of sweetness to them and they’re great just as they are.”
Over a salad for an added burst of flavour. And one of her best sellers is the Oak-aged Blackberry balsamic. Yum.
This is her first time at Studio Fair but second time in Prince George as she attended the Gourmet Festival held last summer. She likes the people of Prince George but is a little scared of the weather right now. It was her first experience with sideways blowing snow yesterday but the warm welcome she gets here certainly makes it easier.
Making my way down another aisle there’s a distracting amount of blingy, shiny things at one of the many corner booths.
Barby B Wreaths' booth is a stunning display of all things holiday with ornaments and wreaths.
Barbara Buttigieg, who is originally from Prince George, spent decades in Europe, and just returned three years ago and that’s when she started with her artistic crafts. The ornaments on display at the booth were created by her daughter Taylor and both ladies do nails at a local salon as their careers.
“I was always into crafts so always enjoyed sewing and all sorts of things and when we lived in Europe we got to know a lot of things that we didn’t have here,” Buttigieg said.
So when she returned to Prince George she brought that European style and creativity with her to share with her hometown.
Find Barby B Wreaths on the arena floor at CN Centre.
Studio Fair is on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at CN Centre.
Admission is $5 per person, children 12 and under are free.
