Come one, come all, to the biggest and brightest gathering of local Turks and Caicos artistic talent around! The white top tent in Turtle Cove will be bursting at the seams with beautiful handcrafted pieces perfect for holiday gift giving or displaying at home. A small teaser from a few of the participating artists:
I will have additional driftwood sculptures, a few new items I am excited to share, the usual past favorites, and even a box of half priced items ready for quick sell!
It's that time of year again! There are still tickets left so come out and support this angelic organization who tirelessly works as the "voice for those who cannot speak."
The crowds gather around the front stage for the conch blowing and conch knocking competitions.
The highlight of the afternoon is always the " ‘conch-etition' which pits the
island's best chefs against each other in a hotly-contested tasting
competition judged by a panel of experts as well as the Festival
attendees. Categories include Best Conch Salad, Best Conch Chowder, Best Specialty Conch and Best in Show. "
Micah, a friend from high school, came all the way from Austin, TX to spend Thanksgiving weekend in the Turks and Caicos and finally experience a relaxing holiday at Fleur de Lys. She and Teresa are pictured all smiles while enjoying the festival.
A local bartender entertains with his impressive balancing and dancing skills.
Just after sunset the We Funk Junkanoo Band took to the street party by storm. This event lets Turks and Caicos traditions shine, be sure not to miss next 2013's 10 year celebration, sure to be the biggest and best yet!
We hosted 17 friends at Fleur de Lys and had a fabulous time. My bestie from high school is here for the long weekend, so nice catching up after too many years! A great holiday to remind us to . . . .
Get your Black Friday fix at Framing Grace Gallery! There will be a welcome reception tomorrow evening for recently arrived to Provo oil painter Charlotte Readhead in addition to new work from many resident gallery artists. I will be debuting my first sculpture series; "Drift":
Drift No. 4 base 6"dia x 37"h
Drift No. 1 base 6" dia x 21"h
Drift No. 2 base 6"dia x 27"h
Drift No. 3 base 6" x 29"h
Drift No. 5 base 5"dia x 16"h
Drift No. 6 base 5"dia x 20"h
Drift No. 7 base 6" dia x 41"h
I also have a hot off the press abstract waterscape painting that will be shown for the first time in public (pictured below). Please join us from 6-8pm for martinis, meet the artists, and holiday cheer! The Regent Village will be aglow with holiday lights and Flowers by Environmental Arts will have open doors for the celebration so there will be plenty of lovely around to look at! We hope to see you there!
Waterscape 36"w x 50"h x 3"d
UPDATE!
A few images from the evening!
Neighboring Environmental Arts Flower Shop filled with goodies and heavenly scents for the holidays.
The gallery reception was even better attended than expected, there were moments when crossing the room simply wasn't an option! So nice to have so many people come out in support of our local art community, the room was absolutely abuzz with conversation.
Many thanks to all my friends who came to show their support!
Congratulations to Joelle and Neil on their beautiful new space and wonderful location in the Regent Village and many thanks for hosting such a great evening at the gallery!
This weekend is full of fab events supporting great causes. Firstly the Ladies Hat Luncheon at the beautiful Regent Palms Resort. Tickets are $75 and include champagne and Pimm's cocktails, lunch, couture hat fashion show, and live and silent auction. All proceeds go towards new classroom space for the Holy Family Academy Mission School.
The brand new Giggles is celebrating their second location with a fundraiser for Enid Capron Primary School. Please stop by and grab a giggler anytime from 9am to 3pm!
On Sunday, "the 6th Annual WindvibesKiteboarding Tournament and Beach Party will
be held on Long Bay beach near the Shore Club. This year's event is
presented by Big Blue Unlimited. The wide array of events will encompass
many of the Turks and Caicos's sports including kiteboarding, kayaking,
stand up paddleboarding, and swimming with Race for the Conch. All
proceeds from the stand up paddleboarding races will go to the TCSPCA.
Less competitive events will include log throwing, a flipper race,
potato sack race, and kite pumping competitions. You don't need to be a
kiteboarder to get involved!
Pre registration is required for kiteboarding, kayaking, swimming and
stand up paddleboarding races. Space is limited. Reserve your place now!
Support your local kiteboarding and watersports community, the amazing young lady who pours her heart and soul into planning and organizing this event year after year, and the tcspca, this beach party is not to be missed!
Exercise it! Whether you are in the United States or here in the Turks and Caicos Islands, What Will You Do After the Election is a great read and commentary relevant to both countries. With very divided populaces, roughly half of you may be celebratory while the other half may feel defeated when the results are finalized. No matter which candidate you endorse, once the vote is in and the majority have spoken, the people must unite towards a common goal! As Benneth Williams so accurately writes, "there is much work to do."
Those that would welcome Dolphin Cove may not understand the truth about dolphins in captivity. To begin to grasp the ethical issues one must first research how these dolphins are forced into captivity in the first place. An eye opening look into that industry is available through the award winning documentary film The Cove. I wrote this post after having seen the film myself, I never imagined such horrors.
PRIDE has written an excellent letter to the government highlighting the historic ways the Turks and Caicos Islands have served as a safe haven for dolphins for decades. Please read the full letter here. Yesterday I wrote my own letter to the governor:
October 31, 2012
To Governor Ric Todd,
I am writing to express my deep disappointment
of the change in legislation to allow the import of animals for the purpose of human
entertainment.Months ago you took a
very brave stand in this country with a push for the advancement of the
Equality Bill, surely realizing that you would face controversy and
opposition.With that great stride in
forward thinking and action, you have now taken a giant leap backward in amending
a righteous law to an unrighteous law.I
would strongly encourage you to dedicate a few hours on researching the captive
dolphin industry.A great resource is the WDC, Whale and DolphinConservation website which posts here
“WDCS believes that the arguments against the confinement of
cetaceans are so over-whelming, that any proposal to keep them captive, for
whatever reason, should be rejected on animal welfare grounds alone. WDCS has a
series of well-substantiated concerns about interactions between humans and
dolphins in captivity. These concerns, relating to the welfare of humans as
well as dolphins, apply equally to DAT. They include the welfare of the animal;
the risk of aggression towards people; the potential for disease transmission
from human to dolphin or vice versa; the fact that dolphins may be forced into
interactions with humans and have little respite from these actions, and the fact
that in so many DAT and other interaction programmes, dolphins are captured
from the wild and are transported thousands of miles to suffer the effects of
confinement in captivity.
Dolphins are large, strong animals, perfectly adapted to the conditions of the
open ocean. Held in a confined space and subjected to forced interaction with
humans, aggressive behaviour can have serious consequences. A recent study
carried out by WDCS into dolphin/visitor interactions at marine parks in
America records many incidents of aggressive behaviour by dolphins towards
human visitors such as threats, biting and butting. This study also raises
serious concerns regarding the potential for the transmission of disease
between human visitors and dolphins. Inadequate regulations exist in relation
to interactions between captive dolphins and members of the public. WDCS is
bringing its concerns and evidence to the attention of relevant governments and
other interested parties, who must address the potential consequences for both
human and dolphins of these interaction programmes.”
If you
are a visual learner with a strong stomach I suggest you watch the award
winning documentary “The Cove,” which will surely open your eyes to the
complexities of this issue. In this country we have a fiercely dedicated environmental
community.We know we have one of the
rarest ecosystems on the planet and though we are few in numbers, we know the necessary
channels to pursue should our arguments fall on deaf ears locally.We desire only positive international media
attention for the good of the country but will resort to the opposite should
this law not be returned to its former righteous state and the permission to the
Dolphin Cove Proposal denied.
Sincerely,
Stacie Steensland-Gaudet
Today, I received THIS response. I plan to drop this letter addressed to planning today, along with another letter opposing the Leeward-dredging-proposal-up-for-consideration. I am asking everyone who cares about our environment and our "Beautiful by Nature" reputation to write their own letters to the Governor and to Planning as soon as possible. Please sign the petition here. Share your opinions and show your support on the facebook page No2CagedDolphinsInTurksandCaicos. To read more about the scientific evidence on why dolphins should not be kept in captivity, see these publications on WDCS. To read the Review of the Environmental Impact Assessment for the Proposed Dolphin Park in Hanover by the Jamaica Environment Trust, please click here.
After three years of participating in Leeward's Halloween trick or treating, Fleur de Lys Villa finally made it on the map! The last couple of years we disappointingly watched little ghouls and goblins pass us by, despite the lantern lit drive and open front door. Looks like the Leeward neighborhood's Halloween spirit and reputation has grown, and Sandpiper Avenue's in particular. The most trick or treaters in years passed tallied around 25, we delighted to see that number triple this year!
So much fun to have the streets full of costumed kids laughing, "boo!"-ing eachother, holding hands or bound in big groups in anticipation of an unexpected fright from any direction.
Our ghost did a great job of welcoming everyone at the gates!
Our first trick or treaters (pictured above) arrived around 5pm, receiving big handfuls of treats as I recalled the weeks worth of leftover candy in years past. I soon wished I had not been so generous as I looked into our fast emptying bowl! I had to resort to giving away plastic spiders from the decor while waiting for candy reinforcements! The back up supply arrived just in the nick of time as a few clever kids had figured out how to open the front gates. Our final trick or treater, miss adorable below, had just missed the last treat by seconds, but she was kind enough to share her bag of goodies with us instead!