by Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services

NNSL (Mar 13/98) - What do you get when you combine six different Northern cultures, more than 40 volunteers and a budget of a quarter of a million dollars?

The answer is the biggest cross-cultural art show Yellowknife has ever seen, and it's all part of the 14th Arctic Winter Games.

"Over the years, the arts programs have been evolving to become a bigger event each time and there is more emphasis on the arts as part of the recreation," says Darlene Mandeville, the chair of the performing arts portion of the cultural committee for the Arctic Winter Games.

"In the NWT, we have the advantage when it comes to this because of the great diverse number of excellent artists and it's good for them because it's a great chance for them to socialize with other artists and exchange information on developing as artists," says Mandeville.

She estimates that about 150 artists practising in a variety of media will participate in the cultural portion of the week.

The participants come from three different schools of art: the fine arts, the traditional arts and the performing arts, and represent the NWT, Alaska, Greenland, Alberta, Magadan (Russian) and the Yukon.

"There are up to 35 events which support demonstrations and exhibits by performers, fine and traditional artists," says Mandeville, who cites the opening ceremonies on Sunday night as the grand kick-off and the gala at NACC as the closing of the cultural component.

"The gala is a chance for all the different contingents to do a different performance," says Caroline Dennill, the organizer of the Arctic Gala at NACC on March 19 and 20. She says the evenings will also include performances by local performers and will feature special guest host Arthur Black, host of CBC Radio 1's Basic Black.

Other art venues during the games week include the museum, the legislature building, the Baker Centre, the Explorer Hotel, the DND hangar, Centre Square Mall and Javaroma. Most of the shows combine the three schools of art.

"We have a lineup of I would say professional artists who will be representing their cultures," says Mandeville, who quotes the original cultural budget at $250,000.

"But because of great corporate sponsorship and in-kind donations and through the efforts of the volunteers, we were able to produce the cultural programs at a lesser cost," says Mandeville. The artists who participate will receive a nominal fee for their work.

The shows have largely been put together by a few paid employees and by more than 40 volunteers who have been planning the cultural program for the last 15 months. A total of 1,200 volunteers and 1,729 athletes will have taken part in the games when they close on March 21.

Mandeville says the artists, the public and the Yellowknife economy all stand to benefit from the cultural program.

"The artists will have had the opportunity to learn a great deal about other art forms, make numerous contacts within the arts' community and gain exposure from the public. People can learn about the cultures through art and better appreciate the importance art has to communities and they'll have the chance to pick up exclusive artwork and there will be a lot of revenue and income left here because of the sales of the artwork," says Mandeville.

It is estimated that overall, the Arctic Winter Games will pour $4 million dollars into the city's economy.