The Annual Encore Art Show kicks off in Lacombe today. The sale is happening at Lacombe Memorial Centre and you can check out the work of local artists and creators.  

“This year we've got 32 artists. A lot of them are new artists. [We have] some exciting new stuff to see. On Friday evening, the show opens at 1:00 Friday afternoon and then from 6:00 to 7:30, we have five of our artists doing a paint off,” said Christina Sturgeon, Events Coordinator.  

There will also be a sip, save, and shop on Friday evening. The Arts Endowment Awards as well as student awards will take place on Saturday afternoon.  

Due to complications caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Encore Art Show hasn’t been able to happen since 2019. Sturgeon says there has been lots of anticipation for this year’s event.  

"I am an artist myself so I really love to see that the City of Lacombe supports the arts as much as they do. The artists I'm just getting to meet a lot of them today as they move in. They are excited to come back and support the event and make sure it continues,” said Sturgeon.  

This year, Sturgeon says there are lots of new artists to the show this year.  

“A big variety of art too there's ceramics and woodworkers, quite a few painters, but a lot of different styles of painters as well, and also our fiber artists. We have a few felting artists one that does landscapes, one that does sculptures. We have a fiber artist who does amazing fiber paintings,” explained Sturgeon.  

Margret Blank in this year’s feature artists. Blank creates paintings with various fibers, fabrics and paint. 

You can check out the Encore Art Sale from 1pm to 8pm on Friday, April 14 and 11AM to 5PM on Saturday, April 15.