Category: Oxygen Art Centre

Genevieve Robertson

Residency:      12 November – 20 December 2025

Artist Talk:     Thursday, December 11, 2025, at 6:00pm

Open Studio:   Saturday, December 13, 2025, from 1:00pm – 3:00pm

Oxygen Art Centre welcomes the public to attend two events at the close of Genevieve Robertson’s residency. Genevieve Robertson is artist-in-residence at Oxygen Art Centre from November 12, 2025, to December 20, 2025.

An artist talk will be held on Thursday, December 11, 2025, at 6:00pm. The Artist Talk will introduce Robertson’s artistic practice, as well as share process-based explorations from her residency. 

An open studio event will take place on Saturday, December 13, 2025, from 1:00pm-3:00pm. The Open Studio event provides an informal view for the public to engage with Robertson’s artistic practice and works-in-progress from within the artist’s working residency studio.

Both events 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. All events are free to attend. For folks who are able, please consider providing a small cash donation at the door. Everyone welcome to attend.

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.

During her residency the artist will offer an Artist Talk on Thursday, December 11, 2025, at 5:00pm, and an Open Studio event on Saturday, December 13, 2025, from 1:00pm to 3:00pm at the artist-run centre. Both events are free to attend. Everyone welcome.

The artist-run centre welcomes Robertson for this residency at an auspicious moment in her practice to provide space, time, and resources to focus on a body of work intended for exhibition at the Midlands Art Centre, UK, in Spring 2026, which will be shared with the community through open studio and artist talk events.

Robertson will be artist-in-residence at Oxygen Art Centre from November 12, 2025, to December 20, 2025. While in residence, the public are invited to attend an Artist Talk on Thursday, December 11, 2025, at 5:00pm, and an Open Studio event on Saturday, December 13, 2025, from 1:00pm to 3:00pm. All events are free to attend. Everyone welcome.

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.

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, November 2025

ILLUSTRATION EXHIBITION BY EMERGING ARTIST BETHANY PARDOE NOW ON VIEW

Oxygen Art Centre is delighted to present an exhibition by illustrator and writer Bethany Pardoe entitled The Small Earth. On view in the O2 vitrine exhibition space from November 22, 2025, to January 16, 2026, The Small Earth presents sketchbook pages and illustrations that shape the cosmology of a graphic novel in progress.

Bethany Pardoe is a traditional illustrator and writer with a BFA from Emily Carr University of Art and Design. From picture books to graphic novels, Pardoe writes and illustrates fantastical stories inspired by growing up as an odd duck.

Imbued with elements of nature and personal folklore, her art and narratives are for people who feel things deeply. Pardoe currently lives and works in Vancouver, BC, and grew up in Nelson, BC, before moving to the coast to attend postsecondary school.

The exhibition, The Small Earth, presents a selection of Pardoe’s works-in-progress to share insight on the emerging artist’s creative praxis and worldbuilding for her forthcoming graphic novel. Selections include pages during Pardoe’s residency at the Banff Centre’s Comics and Graphic Novel program.

Located on the Stanley Avenue side of the Nelson Trading Company building (430 Baker Street) in downtown Nelson, B.C., O2 is a window-turned-gallery that serves as an extension of Oxygen Art Centre’s contemporary art programming.

Pardoe’s exhibition, The Small Earth, will be on view to the public at Oxygen Art Centre’s O2 vitrine exhibition space from November 22, 2025, to January 16, 2026. O2 is a public facing window located in downtown Nelson.

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. Special thanks to Hall Printing for their support in realizing this exhibition.

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Image Credit: Storyteller, Bethany Pardoe, illustration on paper, 2025; Courtesy the artist.

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.

OXYGEN ART CENTRE AWARDED MAJOR MULTI-YEAR FUNDIND

Oxygen Art Centre is excited to announce that the artist-run centre is the recipient of a major multi-year funding program. The generous support comes from the Vancouver Foundation’s Transforming Systems Grant.

These grants of $300,000 offer flexible, operational funding for three years to organizations advancing systemic change by addressing the root causes of inequality and supporting those most affected to shape their own futures.

Vancouver Foundation is dedicated to creating healthy, vibrant, equitable, and inclusive communities across BC. Since 1943, our donors have created 2,200 endowment funds and together we have distributed more than $1.5 billion to charities. From arts and culture to the environment, health and social development, education, medical research and more, we exist to make meaningful and lasting improvements to communities in BC.

Oxygen Art Centre 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.

Located in the city of Nelson, Oxygen was founded as the Nelson Fine Arts Centre Society in 2002 by former writing and visual arts faculty from the Kootenay School of the Arts. Oxygen operates in a 900 sq. ft. renovated warehouse space that serves as a studio, gallery, residency centre, event space, and office.

Oxygen is known for challenging and experimental programming. We value the curatorial, research, and production of contemporary art programming that support diverse artists in all stages of their careers. We are particularly interested in contemporary art practices that are interdisciplinary, process-based, and socially engaged, focused through two core programs: the Exhibition and Residency Program and the Education Program.

With the support of the Vancouver Foundation—at this increasingly precarious economic moment for arts and culture nonprofits—the artist-run centre will direct these funds to human resources and operating expenses to establish a secure foundation for systemic change work.

Vancouver Foundation’s three-year operational funding will increase the organizational capacity required to codify internalized processes into policies, conduct high-level strategic planning activities, and create conditions for critically researching and producing contemporary art programming.

This work will be conducted by Oxygen’s staff and board of directors where they will engage in strategic planning activities and professional development to secure the centre’s future, alongside enhancements to forthcoming public contemporary art programs.

Oxygen Art Centre extends deep gratitude to the Vancouver Foundation for their support of the artist-run centre through the Transforming Systems Grant.

As a non-profit charitable organization, Oxygen is 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 especially thank our collaborators, volunteers, donors, and members for their continued support of the artist-run centre. Not a member yet? Become a Member for just $2 – $10 to support arts and culture in your community!

Oxygen Art Centre is located at #3-320 Vernon Street along the alleyway behind Baker Street in Nelson, British Columbia.

Oxygen Art Centre’s Fall 2025 Art Education Semester is now open for registration. Taking place from September 15, 2025, to November 10, 2025, at the artist-run centre’s downtown facility, the program features classes on writing, drawing, painting, and playwriting, and everything in between.

Favourites like Life Drawing and Painting from a Model return with new classes exploring sketchbooking and handmade textiles with Kaylyn Hardstaff, and a writer’s weekend workshop with Deryn Collier joining the roster.

Learn about the classes and your instructors on Oxygen’s website: https://oxygenartcentre.org/fall-semester/ . Register early to reserve your spot! Classes are small to create a dynamic experience for each student, but they fill up quickly.

Oxygen’s Education program has offered professional art classes to adults and youth for over 21 years. The program is unique as it is developed and taught by established, professional local artists and art educators who share their skills and advanced education with the community.

Interested participants can register to attend each class by signing up online through Google Forms.

As a non-profit artist-run centre we rely on minimum registration to pay professional artist instructor rates and to ensure enough time for instructors and staff to prepare for your class. For information about Oxygen’s registration policies are available on their website and on each registration form.

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 access the facility or to register for a class, please visit Oxygen’s website.

Get creative this fall at Oxygen Art Centre!

Image Credit: Oxygen Art Centre, Fall 2024 Semester Open House and ArtSpeak exhibition, 2024

Website link: https://oxygenartcentre.org/fall-semester/

PUBLIC INVITED TO ATTEND OPENING RECEPTION AT OXYGEN ART CENTRE

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Manuel Axel-Strain + Kalli Van Stone

Residency

14 July – 18 July 2025

Opening Reception

Friday, July 18, 2025, from 6:00pm to 8:00pm

Exhibition

19 July – 23 August 2025

Oxygen Art Centre invites the public to attend the Opening Reception of their summer exhibition program on Friday, July 18, 2025, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The event celebrates the exhibition entitled kt̓kmin uɬ c̓ik̓ʷm (mark and make light), created by artists Manuel Axel-Strain and Kalli Van Stone while in residence at the artist-run centre.

The artists will be in attendance. Light refreshments will be provided. Admission is free.

xʷməθkʷəyəm (Musqueam), Simpcw and Syilx artist Manuel Axel-Strain and Suqnawqin or Syilx Okanagan and Secwepemc artist Kalli Van Stone will develop a new body of work during their five-day residency that will be on view throughout the summer in an exhibition titled, “kt̓kmin uɬ c̓ik̓ʷm,” which is Sylix for “mark and make light.” The exhibition will be on view to the public from July 19, 2025, to August 23, 2025.

In their individual practices, the artists propose opportunities for viewers to glimpse beyond the settler colonial perspective through their chosen mediums of painting and installation (Axel-Strain) and performance (Van Stone).

Often utilizing pictographic and petroglyph depictions in their practices, the artists provoke nuances between what is included and excluded, what is past and present, what is spoken about and what is intentionally withheld concerning entanglements of Indigenous identity, family, and queerness.

Challenging colonial binaries and settler paradigms, the artists collaborate with each other, their families, and their archives and stories to compose a multi-component contemporary art project at Oxygen that will focus on mark making through light (lasers), dance and song (movement and vibration), in an immersive installation.

The public are invited to attend the Opening Reception of kt̓kmin uɬ c̓ik̓ʷm (mark and make light), on Friday, July 18, 2025, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The artists will be in attendance. Light refreshments will be provided. Admission is free.

Axel-Strain and Van Stone will be in residence from July 14, 2025, to July 18, 2025, in preparation for their exhibition kt̓kmin uɬ c̓ik̓ʷm (mark and make light), which will be on view at Oxygen Art Centre from July 19, 2025, to August 23, 2025. The Opening Reception is scheduled for Friday, July 18, 2025, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Everyone welcome to attend.

Oxygen Art Centre is an artist-run centre located at #3-320 Vernon Street along the alleyway behind Baker Street. All events are free to attend.

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

Please note that this program schedule has been updated since its initial publicity cycle. Further details about the artists, the program, and the schedule can be found on Oxygen’s website.

CLOSING RECEPTION AND ARTIST TALK FOR TRIPLE BURNER FLOWER FIELD EXHIBITION

Exhibition

SF Ho

TRIPLE BURNER FLOWER FIELD

15 January – 8 March 2025

Wednesdays to Saturdays, 1 – 5PM

Admission is free

Artist Talk by SF Ho

Saturday, March 8, 2025

5:30 PM – 6:30 PM

Notably, a Book Lover’s Emporium (454 Ward St. Nelson, BC)

Suggested donation: $5 – $20 per person

Closing Reception

Saturday, March 8, 2025

6:30 PM – 8:00 PM

Oxygen Art Centre (#3-320 Vernon St. (alleyway entrance), Nelson, BC)

Admission is free

Oxygen Art Centre presents two events to commemorate the closing of SF Ho’s exhibition TRIPLE BURNER FLOWER FIELD. The exhibition has been on view at the artist-run centre since January 15, 2025, following Ho’s residency in November and December 2024.

The public are invited to attend an artist talk by SF Ho held at Notably, a Book Lover’s Emporium at 454 Ward St. Nelson, BC, on Saturday, March 8, 2025, at 5:30pm. Admission is a suggested donation of $5 – $20 per person at the door.

The artist talk will feature background on the Vancouver-based writer and artist’s practice and current research that led to the exhibition, TRIPLE BURNER FLOWER FIELD. A slide presentation will accompany the talk. Topics will range from Traditional Chinese Medicine and plant cultivation and use in artistic practice, to historical research into Chinese agrarian and cultural practices.

Following the artist talk, the public are invited to the artist-run centre along the alleyway for a Closing Reception celebration of Ho’s exhibition at 6:30 PM. Refreshments and light snacks will be provided. Admission to the closing reception is free.

The exhibition attends to the use of common plants while speaking to first-generation settlers about agriculture and medicine. By highlighting the spiritual and medicinal uses of tea, yarrow, poppy and mugwort, the exhibition examines how life is separated into the categories of useful commodities or invasive weeds within the framework of global capitalism.

TRIPLE BURNER FLOWER FIELD also includes archival and oral accounts of the role of the barefoot doctor during the Cultural Revolution, the agricultural land defense movement in Hong Kong, and the early Chinese market gardens of Nelson, BC. Using emptiness and manifold duality as guiding principles, art making becomes a kind of serious play that points to interdependence with land and beings while eschewing human supremacy.

TRIPLE BURNER FLOWER FIELD is currently on view at Oxygen Art Centre from January 15, 2025, to March 8, 2025, on Wednesdays to Saturdays from 1:00pm to 5:00pm. Admission to the exhibition is free.

SF Ho will be present in Nelson, B.C., for the Artist Talk event at Notably (5:30 pm) and Closing Reception event at Oxygen Art Centre (6:30 pm) on Saturday, March 8, 2025.

Oxygen Art Centre is an artist-run centre located at #3-320 Vernon Street along the alleyway behind Baker Street.

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

Image Credit: SF Ho, Courtesy the Artist, 2024