WHITE ROCK — Those who weren't in attendance at White Rock's International Artist Day festival gala on Oct. 24 missed out on seeing some great original art, including that of late White Rock-based painter Vojislav Morosan who painted up hundreds of scenes of the City by the Sea before his death in 2008.
But those who missed it still have a chance to enjoy Morosan's works for all of 2015, as the annual Tourism White Rock's art calendar is paying special tribute to the artist by sharing 13 of his paintings in its 2015 calendar.
"When I discovered the collection and realized, indeed, Vojislav had 200-plus paintings of White Rock, I realized this needed recognition and what better way to do it than through our calendar?" said Betina Albornoz, executive director of Tourism White Rock. Albornoz organizes the annual Tourism White Rock calendar, which she says alternates between showcasing visual art and photography each of the six years it has been going on for.
"As I was doing a bit of research on who he was, I found out that so many knew him and so many people remembered him at pretty much every corner of our city," she said of the late artist. "Painting the waterfront, the uptown area, the five corners... I think it's the most representative work of our city that I have seen."
Derek Hayes, who also helped put together the calendar, echoed the sentiment. "I can well recall seeing him around the city, painting away. Lots of people can," he said. "He was quite a fixture for many years."
Albornoz also said he painted a lot of houses on the peninsula as well.
"Through this process I discovered people who could identify their places in his paintings," she said, chuckling.
Of the 13 paintings that made the cut, Albornoz said those chosen include iconic landmarks like the actual white rock, the museum, the train, as well as a city trolley.
During the IAD Festival gala on Oct. 24, Morosan's wife of 26 years, Norma, was there to sign copies of the calendar and, according to Albornoz, she was "ecstatic" to see her late husand's painting get the recoginition they deserved. "It is special because I personally don't know any other artists who have this quantity and the quality of these paintings," Albornoz said. The city offered to host a display of Morosan's paintings for two weeks (up until Nov. 15) at the White Rock Community Centre as part of the Art on Display program.
The special tribute art calendar by Tourism White Rock is available for $12 at the White Rock information centre, online at Inwhiterock.com and other select locations.
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