Hundreds of people took part in the Maple Ridge Pitt Meadows Art Studio Tour over the Mother’s Day weekend.
Visitors came from as far away as Bellingham, the Okanagan, Bowen Island, Hope, in addition to the Greater Vancouver Area.
The tour was the largest ever in the event’s 23-year history with more than 100 artists in 31 locations across Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows.
Participants were able to see what local artists do and purchase unique, one-of-a-kind pieces along the way.
This year artists featured their pottery, jewelry, sculpture, textiles, photography, painting, woodwork, furniture and stained glass.
Tracy Quinsey, chair of the tour, described the weekend event as “magical”. She noted that her studio, which she shared with local painter Raeanne Schachter, saw more than 200 visitors over the two-day event.
“There is such a festive atmosphere over the Mother’s Day weekend, and initial reports from our artists suggest that MRPM Art Studio Tour 2023 was a resounding success with brisk sales, lots of visitors, and heartwarming comments on the artist’s work,” said Quinsey.
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One such visitor, Sherry Scott wrote about how amazing it was to see the beautiful art and the creativity of the artists at the many beautiful studios – adding that the tour is a beautiful tradition and thanking those who worked hard to put the event together.
Quinsey noted that since their new website was launched in March, they have received more than 25,000 page views – more than 900 for this year’s tour, specifically. They also delivered 2,500 brochures to local businesses and public spaces like libraries, and they were inundated with requests for more.
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“We were very grateful to our local businesses that featured our posters in their storefronts, as well as, on the walls of their shops. We were also so grateful to our sponsors and community partners for their unprecedented support of the tour this year which made it possible to build a new website, produce brochures and posters, and to advertise the tour,” said Quinsey.
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