Grant, auction show arts organizations are well- supported

Island arts organizations well supported

Though Vashon is a small island community, it sustains two vibrant arts organizations — Open Space for Arts & Community and Vashon Center for the Arts (VCA) — that bring world-class, regionally and residentially beloved performers and visual artists.

From UMO to Vashon Opera and Makana to Lady Smith Black Mambazo, the island is rich with arts events, artists and patrons who appreciate and support them.

If that’s not enough, add to the list no hours-long wait in a ferry line to catch a show in Seattle or Tacoma, and a post-script that heralds the variety of on-island fare with an abundance to fill any calendar weekly.

No wonder islanders often say we feel smug about the arts. Except mostly, we feel exceptionally lucky.

Case in point: With help from islanders and 4Culture, Open Space and VCA recently received substantial financial boosts to support their missions.

Two weeks ago, Open Space, in collaboration with UMO, was awarded a $20,000 grant from 4Culture to fund a movement floor in the new Open Space Black Box Theatre, which should be finished for the grand re-opening of the newly renovated building slated for noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 9.

At VCA’s two-evening art auction, “Swing Time at VCA,” last weekend, islanders raised their paddles to bring in more than $125,000 earmarked for arts scholarships to be given to all ages interested in taking classes.