CENTRE WELLINGTON – The township is gearing up for Culture Days and the Elora-Fergus Arts Council is eager to get on board.
Culture Days is a national event that happens on the municipal level. The non-profit Culture Days Ontario has designated “hubs” and Centre Wellington is one of 14 in the province.
Culture Days, from Sept. 22 to Oct. 15, is a celebration of art and culture and in this municipality it’s going to be big.
Indeed, “Make it Big” is the theme of Culture Days in Centre Wellington.
Susan Thorning, co-chair of the Elora-Fergus Arts Council, said the arts council did a survey earlier in the year, “and many artists said they are feeling disconnected and that they’ve lost their audience.
“So, we approached the township to see if we could help them and engage the community again.
“We’re embracing Make it Big. It will be so big you can’t help but notice.”
Thorning said there are many innovative and unique projects on the go – some that require community participation; others that invite it; and others still that will amuse and entertain.
Also included in Culture Days are some beloved local celebrations, like Pumpkin Day in Bissell Park and the self-guided Twilight Zoo in Elora.
Knitting
String Theory in Fergus is overseeing a community knitting project that’s big enough to cover a bridge.
The goal is for folks to knit squares that will be stitched together to form a big blanket that will, in fact, cover the pedestrian bridge that crosses County Road 18 by the Wellington County Museum and Archives.
“It will be very striking,” Thorning said, adding that the big blanket will be cut into smaller blankets and donated to an animal shelter when the installation is taken down.
St. John Church in Elora is resurrecting its Poppy Project again this year. Thousands of knitted and crocheted poppies will be strung outside the church in the days leading up to Remembrance Day.
But during Culture Days, the church is offering the public the chance to learn to knit or crochet and help stitch all those poppies together.
Sessions are offered on Sept. 27, Oct. 4 and Oct. 11 from 10am to noon at the church.
Tapestry Loom
A big weaving loom will be set up inside the Centre Wellington Community Sportsplex and the public is invited to try their hand at weaving.
“There are a lot of skilled weavers here,” Thorning said. “This project will create a community tapestry.”
Touch a Truck
The Centre Wellington fire department is holding an open house at the Elora station on Oct. 14 from 11am to 2pm. Come out a see what goes on in the fire hall, climb on a fire truck, and maybe event beep the horn.
Studio Art Tour
The tour is on Sept. 23, 24 and Oct. 1 from 10am to 5pm. Dozens of local artists will open their studios for this annual tour.
Twilight Zoo
This self-guided monster tour is slated for Oct. 1 to 15 in Elora and Fergus downtowns.
Pumpkin Day
Pumpkin Day
On Oct. 7, from 10am to 2pm at Elora’s Bissell Park, there will be a drumming circle, pumpkin carving and so much more. The Elora Farmers Market is in on this event as well. The KIPP kitchen in the park will be having a bake that day.
Awakened Voices
Awakened Voices
The Centre Wellington Black Committee is hosting its third version of Awakened Voices – a presentation of historical slave narratives as performed by dub poets and spoken word artists. This presentation will be on Sept. 22, 7 to 9pm at the Fergus Grand Theatre.
Octavia
Puppets Elora has created a character, Octavia, that takes 10 people to operate, and officials are on the lookout for eight children to work the legs. Anyone interested can email bookings@puppetselora.ca or call Annerose at 519-846-8123.
Tale Spinning
Elora’s Donna McCaw will host a storytelling session for adults at the Elora Public Library on Sept. 26 and 27 from 2 to 4pm.
“There’s so much stuff going on,” Thorning said, adding there should be something for everyone during Culture Days.
“We all need to be creative,” she added, noting creative people in general have an easier time solving problems and keeping their problems in perspective.
“This will help the artists, but I really think it will help the community come together.”
There’s more, much much more going on
For more information and to keep up to date on the growing list, visit https://bit.ly/3P3DvtY.
