The second annual Luna Nocturnal Art Festival was a roaring success. The number of attendees surpassed expectations by at least a thousand. Artists from all over the country took part.
As such, it’s not surprising Luna won the Tourism and Attraction Excellence award at last night’s Revelstoke Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Awards.
“The first year surpassed our expectations,” says Victoria Strange, one of the event organizers. “We thought if we got lucky we might get 1,000 people. Instead, 3,800 people came out. Last year we hoped for 5,000. We had stickered 6,000 people by 9 pm. Luna attracts people from every demographic. It’s incredible to think we had nearly the equivalent of the population of Revelstoke in numbers downtown for an evening.”
Strange credits the time of year, her belief that art attracts all sorts of people from all walks of life, and that the festival is designed in a way that it can’t be spoiled by weather, to its success.
Stange and her fellow core organizers, Rob Buchanan, Miriam Manley and Janna Thompson, are thrilled with the win. The four originally met in 2015 when Strange and Manley started to brainstorm festival ideas. Buchanan and Thompson came on board and the vision came together.
“We all had relevant and different backgrounds that contributed to creating the festival,” says Strange. Buchanan is a recognized artist in addition to being involved in the art community, Strange has years of gallery curator experience, Manley works in the performing arts and Thompson in marketing. They complimented one another wonderfully.
The festival also works, Strange notes, because of the community involvement. “The whole festival is really about volunteerism,” says Strange. “It’s a community led event and everyone involved is invested. We had 60 volunteers the night of, 100 or more helping artists with set up, plus those involved throughout the development stages. Nothing could have happened without them all.”
Congratulations to everyone who makes Luna the incredible night that it is, including festival partners Revelstoke Visual Arts Centre, Revelstoke Chamber of Commerce, and the Revelstoke Performing Arts Centre. Your award is well deserved. Congratulations to every nomination of the evening! For a complete list of last nights winners, see below.
- Tourism and Attractions Excellence: LUNA Nocturnal Art & Wonder
- Business Person of the Year: Nicole Cherlet, Big Mountain Kitchen & Linen and Sara Sansom, Birch & Lace/Feather & Stone
- Business of the Year: The Taco Club, Mike Brown and Riley Geidt
- Best New or Renovated Building Design: Mountain View School Project
- Accomodation Excellence: McCarty House Inn
- Food Service Excellence: Chubby Funsters
- Industrial and Manufacturing Excellence: Big Bend Fabworks
- Retail Service Excellence: Big Mountain Kitchen and Linen
- Employee of the year: Tammy Sutherland-Home Hardware
- Entrepreneurial Excellence: Aaron Davidson, Chronometer
- Home-Based Business Excellence: Milestones & Memories Childcare, Mandy McQuarrie
- Community Support Excellence: Fred Beruschi & Steven Hui, Queen Victoria Helipad project
- Youth Employee Award: The Nomad
*photographs by Rob Buchanan
Facebook Comments