Creative P.E.I. hosts “art night” at the Charlottetown Library to help Islanders get creative

by Nash Alonto

Jan. 26, 2024

Peter Benson has been dabbling in painting for a few years. Benson finds it relaxing. He was one of a dozen people who attended Creative P.E.I.’s weekly Art Night the Charlottetown Library Learning Centre on Wed., Jan. 24, 2024. (photo by Nash Alonto)

Art materials were spread across the table, from one side to the other, including paint, pencils, and even 3D printers located way in the back beside some Apple computers. Soft relaxing music is also played in the background for a more chill atmosphere.

Peter Benson was working on two watercolour paintings. One is a forest of old trees, and the other is a green island on an ocean with tiny boats in the foreground.

Benson is one of a dozen people who attended the “Art Night” organized by Creative P.E.I. every Wednesday night at the Charlottetown Library Learning Centre.

“You can come here with nothing, and they’ve got all the supplies, you can do whatever you want, in whatever medium or any type of art, and I think it’s a great idea.

Benson is a retired accountant who moved to P.E.I. from Delaware, Ont., and has lived here with his daughter’s family for over a year-and-a-half. He has been dabbling in landscape painting, especially acrylic, for three years.

“The one thing that’s nice about acrylic is if you make a mistake, it’s easier to cover up,” he said.

“I had thought of, perhaps, trying oil painting, but oil paints take far too long to dry, whereas acrylic, you can take a hair blower and be done in two minutes.”

Peter Benson making a watercolour painting during Creative P.E.I.’s weekly Art Night the Charlottetown Library Learning Centre on Wed., Jan. 24, 2024. (photo by Nash Alonto)

The weekly event was a result of an idea to create community space for artists, said Becca Griffin, Performing Arts Program Coordinator for Creative P.E.I.

“For people to come together and just make stuff and collaborate with each other…and make friends and just have that third space away from work or home where they could be together,” Griffin said.

Hosted by the non-profit Creative P.E.I., the weekly event has been going on since late November of last year. The space for the program is donated by the library. They take donations of unused art supplies to keep things going.

“We are currently in our experimental phase to see what works (and) what doesn’t work,” Griffin said.

Every other week there is also a presentation after 7 p.m. In the past, it has included a play reading, a talk with a local artist, or even watching an episode of the art-centered British children’s television program Art Attack.

Meanwhile, Benson plans to dabble in other types of painting. He said he plans to do plein art painting, which is painting outdoors, in the summer.