MANITOULIN—After more than 20 years as a fixture in Manitoulin’s art scene, 4elements Living Arts will cease operations.
“It is kind of sad,” stated Susan Snelling, chair of 4e, last Thursday. “We made every effort to try to figure out how to continue,” she said, noting that after issuing a call for new volunteers during the spring, the difficult decision to bring 4elements to a close was made. “We did not have the resource capacity we would like to continue, and we (the board) felt it was time to bring it to an end.”
To operate an organization like 4e, “requires a lot of volunteer time. We just didn’t have enough people who had the time to help out; people understandably have other things that they want to do in their lives,” said Ms. Snelling.
4elements currently had four members on its board of directors and has in the past had as many as 7-8.
“We are very proud of the impact 4elements Living Arts has had across Manitoulin Island over the years,” said Ms. Snelling. “The organization formed in response to the need for creative spaces for artists, art exhibitions and land-based arts programming on Manitoulin, and we hope its legacy will continue to inspire creative exploration of land and our relationship to it.”
“Thank you to the artists, educators, leaders, staff, volunteers and community members who contributed to 4elements Living Arts over these many years,” said Ms. Snelling. She listed some of the highlights the group has had over the years including hosting the popular Elemental Festival, the artist residency program over the years, which included artists who lived and worked on the 4e mobile studio, as well as many workshops held over the years introducing people to different forms of art.
“And we have had a lot of great partnerships over the years, including those with Debajehmujig Theatre Group, Manitoulin Streams Improvement Association (MSIA) and most recently Northwords,” continued Ms. Snelling.
“It is the end of something truly powerful-land, arts, community-coming together across Manitoulin in so many ways throughout our history,” said Ms. Snelling. “The board of directors will be making arrangements to donate remaining assets to other non-profit organizations that share 4e’s mission and values.”
