Winner announced for Riddle Me This contest

By Michael Riley, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The Riddle Me This contest that happened over the summer, sponsored by A Place for the Arts, announced a winner of the grand prize basket on Oct. 15; Sylvia Maeder of Cardiff. The basket, featuring wares from artists Gayle Crosmaz, Debbie Christie, John Christie, Leilah Ward, Kelsey Fuller, Luann Coglan and The Muse Gallery and Café, was valued at $850. The contest ran from Aug. 15 to Oct. 3. Crosmaz, marketing and communications with APFTA and Maeder comment to The Bancroft Times on this successful summer/fall contest. 

The Riddle Me This Contest invited residents and visitors to Bancroft to take a closer look at the “Embrace” mural on the side of the Whitfield Building which houses APFTA and the Muse Café and Gallery, which welcomes everyone into town and with its vibrant colours and abstract theme of nature warms the heart of the community, according to Crosmaz. 

The “Embrace” mural is 44-feet long and was painted by artists ranging in age from five years old to 80 years old. It overlaid two giant dragonflies and a firefly as a basis for the collage design, with some sections of the original mural as the background that weren't too badly damaged, as they develop segments of the design with the new art. Algonquin First Nations artists created representations of Algonquin teachings in art form, from their Wawatesi (firefly in Algonquin) Cultural Discovery Project along the river's edge. The giant firefly in the middle of the mural was reserved for First Nations' teaching and history. Some sections of Roosman's original mural were kept as the background as they were still viable, and the new sections were placed over top of them to create a new hybrid artwork. In addition to APFTA, the sponsors included; Burke Chamberlin, the Algonquin Arts Council, Wisdom Drums International, It Stix Signs and Graphics, BMR Lumber, The Muse Café and Gallery and Maynooth Station Lodge. 

A lithographer, designer of books, stage sets and murals, illustrator and painter, the late Roosman was a renowned and award-winning freelance artist for over 25 years. The original mural, unveiled 12 years ago, depicted the history of Bancroft and area since the arrival of the settlers but had become sun damaged in recent years and sections of it needed to be replaced. Those that were still salvageable were treated with varnish to preserve for posterity along with the newly painted sections. Sadly, Roosman passed away earlier this year, but according to Debbie Christie, director with APFTA, he had earlier given his blessing for the project. 

The Riddle Me This contest featured a set of riddles about the imagery on the mural, which encourages all participants to take a closer look at it. The riddle questions were able to be answered by that closer inspection of the artwork, and the mural booklet APFTA published. 

The prizes contained within the grand prize awarded were; a $20 gift certificate toward the next purchase of an original piece of art at APFTA, a 10 per cent off coupon from the Muse Café for the winning submission for that Saturday for each of the eight Saturdays that the event runs, and a grand prize gift basket courtesy of Crosmaz and Wisdom Drums International, which consisted of a Kettle Drum worth $250, a gift certificate for $40 from the Muse Café and Gallery and Liz Raymond, a stain glass pinwheel worth $20 from Debbie Christie at APFTA, a painting from APFTA artist Luann Coghlan worth $75, a painting and a painted ornament from APFTA artist Kelsey Fuller worth $155, and knitted hats and cowl from APFTA artist Leilah Ward. 

Crosmaz added that they were able to keep all their hard work with the mural in the public eye with the contest. 

“Our event encouraged the public to take a closer look at the paintings and the artists who painted them,” she says. 

Maeder told The Bancroft Times that for someone who doesn't usually win prizes, it was a huge surprise for her. 

“I was delighted to receive such a lovely basket of crafts and artwork created by our local artists. You can see the enjoyment an artist puts into their work,” she says. “This contest was terrific in having people not just looking at the mural but also becoming familiar with the artists, seeing the history of Bancroft and understanding the work and meaning that went behind this painting.