Michele LeTourneau
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 02/99) - In Fort Smith, come the second week of August, there will be a feast for the eyes and ears -- with spectacular music and an exhibition of visual arts.

South Slave Festival of the Arts -- started in 1997 and inspired by the Great Northern Arts Festival -- enters its third year.

"What happened was Sonny MacDonald, Richard Mercredi and myself...I met them up in Inuvik, at the arts festival -- my wife and I used to live there," begins Lewis Beck about the festival's inception.

"When my wife and I got down here (Fort Smith), I just happened to bump into them in the coffee shop. We got talking about the arts festival and the thought came up, ŒWhy should they have all the fun up there? Let's see if we can't get something going down here.'"

They put the word out and a core group of artists and art-supporters was formed.

"Our first one in the summer of Œ97 was quite modest," Beck says.

Fort Smith's summer music festival, the Friendship Festival, being already established, seemed a logical starting point. Right from the first year, the arts festival was organized in conjunction with the music festival.

"It went very well. It's kind of the reverse of what happens in Inuvik. With Inuvik, it's the visual arts that are the focus of the event and music is kind of an adjunct to it. Whereas here, the music came first. The arts thing is complimentary," adds Beck.

The following year, in 1998, there were 20 participating artists, 12 more than the first year.

The festival also strives to serve the community by way of its youth.

"We want to encourage the budding young artists," notes Beck on some of the goals of the festival.

"We want to encourage them. They're a little on the shy side. It's kinda hard to get them out, but they're there. And we're working on them. We're anxiously concerned to support the young budding artists for a number of reasons. One, for their sake. And, of course, for the enjoyment of people."

"As a concluding thought," says Beck, "We see the arts as an important aspect of community life and community development. As important as business and industry education and so on. It nurtures the soul. That's part of what we are as people. The arts are important."

Carving in wood, soapstone and antler, painting, watercolours, sketchwork and photography, as well as traditional crafts such as beading and leatherwork are all represented at the festival.

The festival takes place Aug. 12-15.