April Issue Oceanside Arts

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The Oceanside Arts Magazine – April 2026 Issue

Over the past several months, I’ve been contributing a series of articles exploring the rise of regional artists across Canada – shifting the spotlight beyond the familiar centres of Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver, and into the rich creative ecosystems found in smaller communities.

This latest issue of Oceanside Arts Magazine brings together a compelling range of voices and perspectives, each shaped by place, lived experience, and the act of making. We open with a featured conversation with Octavio Ribeiro, whose work – spanning figure, interior, and cityscape – reflects a lifetime of observation, technical exploration, and an intuitive response to his subjects.

April Issue Oceanside Arts

January Issue Oceanside Arts

Throughout the issue, readers are invited into the personal journeys of artists working across diverse mediums. Zana Ancerl Jefferies offers insight into a multidisciplinary practice rooted in design, intention, and meaning, while profiles of artists such as Emma Paveley and Elissa Anthony reveal how creative paths evolve over time through experience, place, and persistence.

A strong sense of place runs like a current through these pages. Features such as Looking at Nova Scotia and Travelling for Art’s Sake: Egypt explore how landscape, history, and culture shape artistic expression. Meanwhile, A Vibrant Collective of More Than 20 Artists reflects on the energy and connection found within shared creative environments.

April Issue Oceanside Arts

February Issue Oceanside Arts

Other pieces turn inward, exploring creativity as a form of reflection and storytelling. Cantaloupe and Other Local Legends highlights the role of narrative in artistic practice, while Art Therapy examines the powerful link between creativity, healing, and emotional expression.

The issue also celebrates the broader arts landscape. Echoes of Salt and Story weaves together music and storytelling in an immersive performance grounded in coastal traditions. Closer to home, At the MAC shines a light on the McMillan Arts Centre as a dynamic hub for exhibitions, learning, and creative engagement in the Oceanside region. Together, these stories form a layered portrait of contemporary creative life in Canada and beyond.

April Issue Oceanside Arts

March Issue Oceanside Arts

April Issue Oceanside Arts

In this issue, I’m pleased to share my interview with Nova Scotia-based artist Dave Barrer. Known for his bold, stylized interpretations of iconic Canadian landscapes, Barrer’s work blends realism with graphic design sensibilities – resulting in large-scale, dramatic compositions of mountains, sky, and coastline. His early experiences guiding canoe trips along the Mattawa and Ottawa River systems continue to inform his deep connection to the Canadian wilderness.

In our conversation, we explore his distinctive outlining technique, which lends his landscapes a striking, pop-infused edge.

Please enjoy this month’s issue.

April Issue Oceanside Arts

Read more of my writing about the Arts in Canada on my top Canadian Art Blog, Iconography.

West Coast Art Magazine

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Oceanside Arts Issue 3 – A West Coast Art Magazine Rooted in Place

On the eastern shores of Vancouver Island lies Oceanside, a coastal region shaped by salt air, long horizons, and a pace of life that invites reflection. Encompassing the City of Parksville and the Town of Qualicum Beach, along with Nanoose Bay, Coombs, Errington, French Creek, Bowser, Deep Bay and Qualicum Bay, the region forms a vibrant cultural corridor within the Regional District of Nanaimo.

Oceanside has long attracted collectors, artists, and cultural patrons drawn to its luminous coastline and contemplative atmosphere. A remarkable concentration of creative talent has taken root here, supported by the dedicated advocacy of the Oceanside Arts Council. At its heart stands the McMillan Arts Centre, a historic schoolhouse transformed into a dynamic arts hub housing three galleries and educational space that fosters both emerging and established voices.

Now in its third issue, Oceanside Arts magazine reflects this thriving ecosystem. While grounded in regional programming and artists, its scope extends outward, connecting readers to art travel and cultural initiatives across Canada and beyond.

West Coast Art Magazine – Oceanside Arts

This issue highlights the practices of Elfrida Schragen, Kyle J. Bennett, Elspeth Pratt, and Sarah Beck, alongside thoughtful features on community engagement. Nazanin Shoja reflects on her 15-year involvement with BC Culture Days, and Diane Moran shares insights into Mindfulness in May, a youth exhibition in Qualicum Beach. Readers are also transported to Petra, Jordan, and invited into the Harvard Art Museums to explore the Forbes Pigment Collection, 2,500 historic pigments examined through an audio tour led by conservation experts.

For collectors, publications like Oceanside Arts offer more than coverage. They provide context. They trace the threads between artist, place, and patron, illuminating the cultural fabric that gives artwork lasting resonance.

On the West Coast, the tide carries more than water. It carries stories.

West Coast Art Magazine

Oceanside Arts Magazine Issue 3

Oceanside Arts Magazine

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A Publication of the Oceanside Community Arts Council – Oceanside Arts Magazine

The Oceanside Community Arts Council (OCAC) is a collective of arts professionals serving the Oceanside region of Vancouver Island, including Qualicum Beach, Parksville, Nanoose Bay, and Nanaimo. The council plays a vital role in supporting and promoting art, music, and culture across the region, while also providing essential funding and programming support for The MAC (MacMillan Arts Centre), the area’s public art gallery.

Parksville, located within the community of Oceanside on Vancouver Island.

Through exhibitions, performances, classes, workshops, and community initiatives, OCAC fosters meaningful connections between artists and the public, helping to sustain a vibrant and accessible arts ecosystem in the Oceanside region.

Oceanside Arts Magazine

Oceanside Arts Magazine

Recently, OCAC launched Oceanside Arts Magazine, a monthly publication dedicated to celebrating the creativity, culture, and artistic life of the region and beyond. With this second issue, the magazine continues to take shape as a dynamic platform for artists, writers, and arts organizations to share work, ideas, and perspectives that reflect the richness of contemporary creative life on Vancouver Island and across Canada. Rooted in the belief that the arts are essential to a healthy, connected community, each issue features artist profiles, exhibition highlights, interviews, critical perspectives, and opportunities for engagement through galleries, performances, studio tours, and workshops.

I am pleased to be a regular contributor to Oceanside Arts Magazine, writing a series focused on regional arts and artists across Canada. Drawing on my extensive national arts network, I will be sharing stories from local arts communities and exploring how creative practices and markets are evolving beyond major urban centres.

Oceanside Arts Magazine

In this second issue, I begin with Beyond the Big Three: Why Regional Voices Are Reshaping Canadian Art Collecting, an exploration of art markets and artistic activity outside the familiar metropolitan hubs of Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver.

You can read the current edition here. You can read more articles by Brandy Saturley here.