Garden Day in the Park
St. Albert Botanic Park
Sunday, July 29 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Garden Day and Rose Show
1 to 4 p.m.
Butterflies in the Park
1 p.m.
St. Albert Chamber Music Society Concert
1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Fashion in the Park
4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.All events at St. Albert Botanic Park, 265 Sturgeon Rd.
Fashion show tickets are $49 at www.fashioninthepark.eventbrite.ca. All other events free.
Out in St. Albert Botanic Park, a long stretch of multi-coloured blooms sway gently in the breeze, their fragrant perfume mingling with the spicier scents of trees.
As you breathe in the sweet scents floating through the air, stress levels drop 10 points. It’s as if you’ve entered a portal into a serene, verdant paradise, something the doctor prescribed and a magician concocted.
This coming Sunday, as this amazing floral landscape parades its showy colours, the botanic park hosts the 8th annual Garden Day in the Park, a legacy from St. Albert’s 150th anniversary.
This year’s event is a full-blown creative affair offering a rose show, music concert, art installation and fashion show.
Launching this casual, outdoor event at 1 p.m. is Butterflies in the Park, the official unveiling of sculptor Ryland Fortie’s art installation.
The installation is part of the City of St. Albert’s Art in Public Places Emerging Arts Program. Raised in Kamloops and a graduate of Thompson Rivers University, Fortie lived in St. Albert for a time.
His untitled work is an asymmetrical sculpture of three wings that spin on an axis, said Heidi Alther, City of St. Albert visual arts coordinator.
“It’s aluminum and has primary panels bolted onto a central axis pole and the wings move with the wind,” Alther said. “It’s kinetic. The idea is that it acts as a symbol of growth. You have to be active to pursue your dreams, to open your wings like a butterfly or bloom like a flower.”
Individuals looking for a music fix are encouraged to wander towards the gazebo where Wild Rose String Quartet will perform several sets starting at 1:30 p.m.
Founded in 2008 as a mandatory class collaboration of four University of Alberta music students, the ensemble has developed into a versatile group equally at ease playing classical, jazz and Latin music.
The current members are cellist John Fedor, violist Darrell Soetaert and violinists Amanda Alstad and Scott Zubot.
Their sets will include an eclectic mix of Mozart and Beethoven sprinkled with lighter fare such as George Andrix’s arrangement of Fly Me to the Moon, a La Vie En Rose arrangement of At Last as well as Carlos Gardel’s Argentinean tango, Por Una Cabeza.
Unlike some of Edmonton’s high-art string quartets, Soetaert explains that Wild Rose sits in the middle range. Instead of planning a season, the ensemble is more business focused and is always on the lookout for new gigs.
“We like having fun together. We really like each other’s company. We get along well and that comes out in our music.”
The evening closes at 4:30 p.m. with an inaugural fashion show, an experimental event to develop more tourism, said Ashton Huber, the botanic park’s marketing associate.
Four models will strut the runway under a shaded tent wearing Cerulean Boutique’s summer wear that transitions to fall. The collection includes flirty dresses, light pants, jewel-coloured tops and blouses as well as summer sandals.
Jill Bulmer, co-owner of Cerulean said, “The gardens are stunning right now. And this year, every designer has florals. It’s perfect for a garden fashion show.”
