Oxygen Art Centre - I Love Nelson

22 May 2026

Oxygen Art Centre

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22 May 2026

Oxygen Art Centre

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: BUY A RAFFLE TICKET TO SUPPORT OXYGEN ART CENTRE

Important Dates

Final ticket sales deadline: June 19, 2026, at 5:00:00 p.m. PT
Prize Raffle draw: June 19, 2026, at 7:00:00 p.m. PT
Online Raffle link: https://oxygenartcentre.rafflenexus.com/

Oxygen Art Centre’s Fundraising committee is delighted to announce the launch of a Raffle for the artist-run centre! Starting Friday, May 15, 2026, community members are invited to purchase raffle tickets to be eligible to win six exciting prize packages!

To participate, visit the online raffle website, https://oxygenartcentre.rafflenexus.com/, to purchase a Single Ticket for $10, a 3-Ticket Pack for $25, or a 10-Ticket Pack for $50. All proceeds go to Oxygen Art Centre to support ongoing contemporary art programming in Nelson, BC.

The Raffle is a great way for folks in the community to support the artist-run centre with an added perk of winning one of six incredible prize packages.

All prizes are generously donated by local businesses totalling to 20 incredible prizes. Each prize is bundled into thematic packages, boasting valuations up to $960!

Packages serve a variety of interests, including the “Design & Build Prize Package” featuring a 2-hour consultation with Marc Boutin Architect, a 2-hour consultation or work with Bowick Electric, and a $250 gift card toward the Nelson Home Hardware Building Centre.

Hit the slopes, climb, row, and explore with this all-season adventure pack—featuring Whitewater lift tickets, climbing, fitness, and outdoor gear for your next Kootenay adventure in the “Adventure Pack”. This package features passes and gift cards to Whitewater Ski Resort, the Cube Climbing Centre, Valhalla Pure Outfitters, Nelson Rowing Club, and the Nelson and District Community Centre Gym and Pool.

The “Dream Retreat” includes a three-night stay at the Fibonacci Tiny House and a gift card to L&C French Bakery, and the “Arts All Access” provides full season access to live performances and inspiring exhibitions at The Capitol Theatre and the Nelson Museum Archives and Gallery.

Get hands-on creative experience and supplies to spark your next artistic project in the “Maker’s Kit” package towards art classes at Oxygen Art Centre and MUD Ceramics, and a gift card to Cowan’s Office Supplies Ltd.

Finally, the “Taste of Nelson” package boasts a delicious selection of local favourites and flavours in the community, including gift cards to Nelson Olive Oil Co., Red Light Ramen Restaurant, Sprout Plant-based Eatery, and Kootenay Co-op Grocery, totalling $338 value.

With something for everyone, Oxygen’s Raffle is an exciting opportunity for folks to support their artist-run centre and engage with local businesses by winning one of six exciting prize packages.

Oxygen Art Centre is a nonprofit artist-run centre located at #3-320 Vernon Street along the alleyway behind Baker Street in Nelson, B.C. Learn more about the raffle, the prizes, the local businesses, and your artist-run centre by visiting Oxygen’s website or directly via the Raffle Nexus link.

Oxygen Art Centre was founded as the Nelson Fine Arts Centre Society in 2002 by former writing and visual arts faculty at the Kootenay School of the Arts. The centre spent its first two years establishing its educational focus and in January 2005, the society opened the Oxygen Art Centre in downtown Nelson.

“Oxygen” was adopted as the artist-run centre name to underscore how essential the arts are in our lives and our communities and has come to form the organization’s ethos as a creative hub for contemporary art in the region.

Raffle ticket sales close on June 19, 2026, at 5:00 PM PT. The draw will take place at Oxygen Art Centre on June 19, 2026, at 7:00 PM PT. This is the second iteration of Oxygen’s Raffle. The artist-run centre’s first raffle was held last spring and raised over $4,000 for the arts education program.

The winning ticket is drawn using Random Number Generator software (RNG). All ticket holders are welcome to attend the draw. Winners will be posted online at the Raffle Nexus webpage on June 21, 2026.

This raffle is coordinated by Oxygen’s amazing volunteer fundraising committee. Thank you to committee members, Emilie Leblanc-Kromberg, Erica Konrad, Allison Morgan, Riya Garg, and Stephanie Ostrander for their dedication and coordination, and to our sponsors for their generosity in making this fundraising campaign possible.

Oxygen’s Raffle will be open to the public from May 15, 2026, to June 19, 2026. Participants from British Columbia who are over 19 years of age are invited to participate. This raffle is facilitated under the BC Gaming License no.173723.

Image Credit: Marcus Dénommé, screen printing set-up for workshop at Oxygen Art Centre, 2025

Press Contact:

Julia Prudhomme

Executive Director

Oxygen Art Centre

info@oxygenartcentre.org

15 May 2026

Oxygen Art Centre

TRAFALGAR GRADE NINE STUDENT GROUP EXHIBITION TO OPEN AT OXYGEN ART CENTRE

Exquisite Audacity

Group Exhibition

Opening Reception: Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at 5:00 PM

Exhibition: May 20, 2026 – May 23, 2026

Exhibition on view:

Thursday, May 21, 2026, to Saturday, May 23, 2026

1:00 PM to 5:00 PM

Admission is free

Oxygen Art Centre is delighted to present the group exhibition, Exquisite Audacity, featuring artworks by Sharon Inkpen’s Grade Nine students from Trafalgar Middle School.

The exhibition opens with a public reception on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at 5:00 PM. The artists will be in attendance. Light refreshments provided with thanks to SaveOn Foods for their generous support.

To be audacious means to be bold — to take risks, challenge yourself, and step beyond what feels safe or familiar. To be exquisite means something deeply beautiful, carefully crafted, and full of meaning. Together, these words capture the spirit of this Grade 9 art cohort and the work they have created.

Throughout this year, these artists demonstrated exquisite audacity through their willingness to experiment, push their technical skills, and explore new ways of visually communicating ideas and emotions. They embraced uncertainty and creative risk-taking, trying unfamiliar materials, techniques, and perspectives even when success was not guaranteed. In doing so, they discovered that growth in art often begins where comfort ends.

The courage shown in this exhibition goes beyond technique. Each artwork represents a moment of vulnerability — a decision to share something personal, meaningful, or joyful with others. Whether through colour, symbolism, composition, or subject matter, these students allowed themselves to communicate honestly and creatively. That bravery is what makes this collection so powerful.

There is something truly exquisite about audacity: the beauty that emerges when people trust themselves enough to create boldly. This exhibition celebrates not only the finished artworks, but also the resilience, imagination, and confidence developed along the way. Exquisite Audacity is a reflection of young artists learning that taking creative risks can lead to unexpected beauty, pride, and self-discovery.

This student group exhibition is a celebration of young artists in our community and takes place during Oxygen’s spring semester.

Many thanks to Sharon Inkpen, Art Teacher, for supporting these artists and working with Oxygen Art Centre’s team to make this group exhibition possible.

On behalf of Sharon Inkpen and the artists included in this exhibition, we extend gratitude to Positive Apparel Thrift Store for their generous donations over the years, including records, CDs, teacups, magazines, books, and clothing that our students were able to experiment with and transform into found object artworks and creative canvases.

Many thanks to Save-On-Foods for generously providing food for our opening night and helping make the event welcoming and memorable for everyone who attended.

Exquisite Audacity will be on view from Thursday, May 21, 2026, to Saturday, May 23, 2026, from 1:00pm to 5:00pm at the artist-run centre’s downtown facility. Admission is free.

The public are invited to celebrate the exhibition at the opening reception on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at 5:00pm at Oxygen Art Centre’s downtown facility, #3-320 Vernon Street, Nelson, B.C.

Image Credit: Artwork created by the Grade Nine Trafalgar Middle School Art Class for this Group Exhibition, 2026

Press Contact:

Julia Prudhomme

Executive Director

Oxygen Art Centreinfo@oxygenartcentre.org—

8 May 2026

Uncategorized, Oxygen Art Centre

OXYGEN ART CENTRE HOLDS ARTIST TALK FEATURING GENEVIEVE ROBERTSON

Genevieve Robertson

Artist Talk: Friday, June 5, 2026, at 6:00 PM

Location: Oxygen Art Centre, #3-320 Vernon Street, Nelson, B.C. (alleyway access)

Oxygen Art Centre is delighted to host an artist talk event featuring Nelson-based artist Genevieve Robertson on Friday, June 5, 2026, at 6:00PM. The event is an extension of Robertson’s Fall 2025 residency at the artist-run centre to share the new body of work developed during this time.

Genevieve Robertson was artist-in-residence at Oxygen Art Centre from November 12, 2025, to December 20, 2025. Robertson works at the intersection of visual art and environmental studies. Her practice is grounded in drawing and painting, extending to video, installation, and various forms of collective work and collaboration. Through long-term place-based research projects, her work explores anthropogenic impacts on ecology and the climate, and the intelligence and interconnection of the life systems of which we are part.

The event will be held at Oxygen Art Centre’s downtown facility, located along the alleyway behind Baker Street at Stanley Avenue, Unit #3A-320 Vernon Street, Nelson, B.C.

This event is free to attend. Doors open at 5:45PM. The talk begins at 6:00PM and will include a short question and answer period at the conclusion of Robertson’s talk.

The Artist Talk will introduce Robertson’s artistic practice, as well as share process-based explorations from her residency and resultant exhibition at the Midlands Art Centre in the UK entitled “Under the Orange Sticks of the Sun,” currently on view this Spring 2026.

This program is generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, the BC Arts Council, the Vancouver Foundation, and the Regional District of Central Kootenay ReDi program.

The public are invited to attend the artist talk event on Friday, June 5, 2026, at 6:00PM. Oxygen Art Centre is located at #3-320 Vernon Street along the alleyway behind Baker Street in Nelson, British Columbia. More information about how to access the facility can be found on Oxygen’s website or by contacting info@oxygenartcentre.org.

Image Credit: Documentation of Genevieve Robertson’s residency at Oxygen Art Centre featuring works in progress, December 2025

Press Contact:

Julia Prudhomme

Executive Director

Oxygen Art Centre

info@oxygenartcentre.org

—

Julia Prudhomme (she/her)

Executive Director / oxygen art centre

My regular office hours are Tuesday – Thursday, 9:00am – 2:00pm PT. Responses will be slow outside of this window.

info@oxygenartcentre.org

www.oxygenartcentre.org

#3 – 320 Vernon St. Alley Entrance

Nelson, British Columbia, V1L 4E4

Oxygen Art Centre is is an artist-run centre located on the tm̓xʷúlaʔxʷ (land) of the Sn̓ʕaýckstx (Sinixt), Syilx and Ktunaxa Nations colonially known as the West Kootenay in the southeastern interior region of British Columbia, Canada.

We strive to listen, learn and grow respectful relationships with all those who have deep connections with this land and its waterways, including Métis and many diverse Indigenous persons. We honour their ongoing presence as stewards and carriers of knowledge.

We make this statement to recognize our privilege as uninvited guests and to reflect on our own connections to this place. Our responsibility as an artist-run centre is to uplift voices of justice, move at the speed of trust, and deepen understanding and relationships.

We are grateful for the financial support we receive from the Canada Council for the Arts, BC Arts Council, BC Gaming, Province of BC, Government of Canada, Vancouver Foundation, Columbia Kootenay Cultural Alliance, Columbia Basin Trust, Regional District of Central Kootenay’s ReDi program, Osprey Community Foundation, United Way, Nelson Lions Club, and Nelson and District Credit Union.

We offer thanks to the Polka Dot Dragon Festival, the Elephant Mountain Literary Festival and other key partners including Hall Printing, Speedpro Signs, and Selkirk College for their support.

We especially thank our collaborators, volunteers, donors, and members.

24 April 2026

Oxygen Art Centre

SUMMER STUDENT EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY AT OXYGEN ART CENTRE

Oxygen Art Centre is currently looking for a candidate to fulfil one (1) summer employment opportunity: Residency Coordinator (In-person, CSJ).

This summer employment opportunity is generously supported by the Canada Summer Jobs program.

To apply, email a Cover Letter and Resume to info@oxygenartcentre.org with the subject line: “ATTN: Residency Coordinator Application.” Please include confirmation of your Canada Summer Jobs (CSJ) eligibility in the Cover Letter and email.

Applications will be accepted until Wednesday, May 6, 2026, at 12AM Midnight PT.

The Residency Coordinator position will be employed over a 9-week period from June 8, 2026, to August 8, 2026.

Reporting to Oxygen’s Executive Director, the Residency Coordinator (CSJ) will assist with day-to-day arts administrative duties with focus supporting the Summer 2026 Residency with textile artists Paige Gratland, Glenn Gear, and Daniel Barrow (July 1 – August 8, 2026), as well as conduct contemporary art research to support the Exhibition & Residency program and assist with the research and production of exhibition catalogues, exhibitions, residencies, and adjunct educational materials.

A typical work week for this position is Tuesday-Saturday at approximately 6 hours per day, 30 hours per week. The employee will develop a flexible work schedule to support public programming including some evenings and weekends. This position includes working with artists, the public, and independently.

The Residency Coordinator’s work will primarily be conducted on site at the centre’s downtown Nelson facility. Research and administrative work will be conducted remotely. The Residency Coordinator will have access to a laptop, software, and technology to support this flexible work arrangement. The Residency Coordinator (CSJ) will develop a work plan and schedule specific to the candidate’s interests and goals with the Executive Director during the Orientation period (June 8-10, 2026).

This position is funded by Canada Summer Jobs. Additional administration through the CSJ portal will be required at the beginning and end of the employment contract. Candidates are required to state their eligibility for the CSJ program in their Cover Letter and email.

Oxygen Art Centre is a rural artist-run centre operating on tm̓xʷúlaʔxʷ (land) of the Sn̓ʕaýckstx (Sinixt), Syilx and Ktunaxa Nations colonially known as the West Kootenay in the southeastern interior region of British Columbia, Canada, in the city of Nelson.

Oxygen Art Centre’s activities include the Exhibition & Residency Program and the Education program. Oxygen is unique in its structure and provides vital arts and cultural programming. We are currently looking for a Residency Coordinator to add to our dynamic team.

The centre’s facility is located at #3-320 Vernon Street along the alleyway behind Baker Street in Nelson, British Columbia. More information about the organization can be found on Oxygen’s website or by contacting info@oxygenartcentre.org.

Oxygen Art Centre will accept applications to the Residency Coordinator (CSJ) summer employment opportunity until Wednesday, May 6, 2026. Applications are to include a Cover Letter and Resume. Please review the qualifications and scope of the position on Oxygen’s website.

Image Credit: documentation from Summer 2024 artist-in-residence Chris Dufour’s plant dying workshop, 2024; Oxygen Art Centre

Press Contact:

Julia Prudhomme

Executive Director

Oxygen Art Centre

info@oxygenartcentre.org—

Julia Prudhomme (she/her)

Executive Director / oxygen art centre

My regular office hours are Tuesday – Thursday, 9:00am – 2:00pm PT. Responses will be slow outside of this window.

info@oxygenartcentre.org

www.oxygenartcentre.org

#3 – 320 Vernon St. Alley Entrance

Nelson, British Columbia, V1L 4E4

Oxygen Art Centre is is an artist-run centre located on the tm̓xʷúlaʔxʷ (land) of the Sn̓ʕaýckstx (Sinixt), Syilx and Ktunaxa Nations colonially known as the West Kootenay in the southeastern interior region of British Columbia, Canada.

We strive to listen, learn and grow respectful relationships with all those who have deep connections with this land and its waterways, including Métis and many diverse Indigenous persons. We honour their ongoing presence as stewards and carriers of knowledge.

We make this statement to recognize our privilege as uninvited guests and to reflect on our own connections to this place. Our responsibility as an artist-run centre is to uplift voices of justice, move at the speed of trust, and deepen understanding and relationships.

We are grateful for the financial support we receive from the Canada Council for the Arts, BC Arts Council, BC Gaming, Province of BC, Government of Canada, Vancouver Foundation, Columbia Kootenay Cultural Alliance, Columbia Basin Trust, Regional District of Central Kootenay’s ReDi program, Osprey Community Foundation, United Way, Nelson Lions Club, and Nelson and District Credit Union.

We offer thanks to the Polka Dot Dragon Festival, the Elephant Mountain Literary Festival and other key partners including Hall Printing, Speedpro Signs, and Selkirk College for their support.

We especially thank our collaborators, volunteers, donors, and members.

19 April 2026

Oxygen Art Centre

OXYGEN OPENS CALL FOR FREE ONLINE MENTORSHIP PROGRAM FOR REMOTE ARTISTS

Hedge-rider: online mentorship program
Deadline to apply: April 29, 2026, at 12 AM Midnight PDT

Form link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfNhhFvT212nE2LyqWiCc_4h32_dmbxwuQovAIvg2bCG5hHxw/viewform?usp=header

Oxygen Art Centre announces an open call to emerging or early-career artists living and working in remote areas across British Columbia to participate in a free, online mentorship program.

Presented alongside the artist-run centre’s spring semester, “Hedge-rider” is an opportunity for artists to work one-on-one with artist-mentor Genevieve Robertson.

Hedge-rider is a free, online mentorship program designed to support emerging, remotely located contemporary artists. Presented by Oxygen Art Centre, it is open to artists working in all mediums across visual and interdisciplinary practices who live and work in remote, rural contexts across British Columbia.

Mentees will be paired with Nelson-based artist Genevieve Robertson. Meetings will take place online via Zoom. Meetings will be structured according to the mentee’s needs and specific directions.

Three artists will be selected to participate in three one-hour meetings taking place from June 1, 2026, to July 16, 2026.

The artist-mentor, Genevieve Robertson, will support artists in the areas of professional development, studio work, and writing. Robertson is specifically interested in the responsibilities, gifts and challenges of living outside an urban centre as an artist, and how place informs practice and profession.

In the spirit of liminality, the program is entitled “hedge-rider” to connect with the etymology of the hag, a woman or practitioner who lives in two realms simultaneously.

The hedge-rider’s artist-mentor, Genevieve Robertson, is interested in the idea of someone who occupies two places or realms at once, whether this is the hedge-rider who lives on the periphery of a town, an artist who bridges rural and urban contexts, or someone who has access to and knowledge of more-than-human spaces–bringing experience across one to the other. Information gained from hedge-rider journeys is used for healing, finding lost items, or gaining wisdom, which this program seeks to situate within artistic exchange.

This program is an extension of Robertson’s Fall 2025 residency at Oxygen Art Centre, where the artist developed a new body of work intended for exhibition this Spring in the Midlands, UK. Hedge-rider provides meaningful engagement in studio praxis and connection across distance.

The deadline to apply is April 29, 2026, by 12 AM Midnight PDT. Applications are to be submitted via the Google Form available on Oxygen’s website. More information about the selection criteria can be found on Oxygen’s website and on the Google Form.

Applications will be reviewed according to an equity-lens. Three artists will be chosen to participate in the mentorship program. Selected artists will be notified by May 8, 2026.

Oxygen Art Centre is an artist-run centre located at #3-320 Vernon Street along the alleyway behind Baker Street. For more information about how to apply or what to expect, please contact us via e-mail.

– 30 –

Image Credit: Geneveive Robertson, Monument Creek Wildfire, video still, October 2022; Courtesy the Artist (above); “Hedge-rider” promotional graphic, Oxygen Art Centre, 2026 (below)

Website link: https://oxygenartcentre.org/hedge-rider-online-mentorship-program/

Press Contact:

Julia Prudhomme

Executive Director

Oxygen Art Centre

info@oxygenartcentre.org

—

Julia Prudhomme (she/her)

Executive Director / oxygen art centre

My regular office hours are Tuesday – Thursday, 9:00am – 2:00pm PT. Responses will be slow outside of this window.

info@oxygenartcentre.org

www.oxygenartcentre.org

#3 – 320 Vernon St. Alley Entrance

Nelson, British Columbia, V1L 4E4

Oxygen Art Centre is is an artist-run centre located on the tm̓xʷúlaʔxʷ (land) of the Sn̓ʕaýckstx (Sinixt), Syilx and Ktunaxa Nations colonially known as the West Kootenay in the southeastern interior region of British Columbia, Canada.

We strive to listen, learn and grow respectful relationships with all those who have deep connections with this land and its waterways, including Métis and many diverse Indigenous persons. We honour their ongoing presence as stewards and carriers of knowledge.

We make this statement to recognize our privilege as uninvited guests and to reflect on our own connections to this place. Our responsibility as an artist-run centre is to uplift voices of justice, move at the speed of trust, and deepen understanding and relationships.

We are grateful for the financial support we receive from the Canada Council for the Arts, BC Arts Council, BC Gaming, Province of BC, Government of Canada, Vancouver Foundation, Columbia Kootenay Cultural Alliance, Columbia Basin Trust, Regional District of Central Kootenay’s ReDi program, Osprey Community Foundation, United Way, Nelson Lions Club, and Nelson and District Credit Union.

We offer thanks to the Polka Dot Dragon Festival, the Elephant Mountain Literary Festival and other key partners including Hall Printing, Speedpro Signs, and Selkirk College for their support.

We especially thank our collaborators, volunteers, donors, and members.

Category: Oxygen Art Centre