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c o m m u n i t y | by A l P r i c e Arts Groups on the Move! Excitement is mounting as the North Vancouver Commission workshops, the annual community dance, the Wild Lights Festival, and much more. The Arts Council is the sponsoring agency of the major regional millennium project, Visions of the North Shore, in which 12 print artists have created original work reflecting their feelings on 12 different historical and natural sites around the North Shore. "Our day-to-day business is to fulfil our mandate in any way we can," says North Vancouver Arts Council Executive Director Linda Feil from the cramped quarters she shares with other staff and volunteers at Presentation House. "We do a lot of partnering with other community groups and schools and are able to be really creative with our programming. We are the advocate in the community for the arts, and this building exists because of that advocacy." But Presentation House, once the community gallery among other things, has now been set up as a separate non-profit society and is moving in a different direction, explains Feil. The new facility, donated to the City by a developer in exchange for relaxation of parking demands, will be first and foremost a versatile art space for the community. "The gallery space has always been the first priority for both of us," says Mary Ann Anderson, director of Cultural Services of the North Shore Arts Commission. "The added bonus is that with the Arts Commission and Arts Council sharing the same space, it will allow us to meet the diverse arts and cultural community of the North Shore in one place--ultimately serving all of our stakeholders better." Lori Phillips, who job-shares with Anderson at the Arts Commission, agrees that the move is a positive one for both groups and the public. "Our work is mainly in cultural planning for the two Arts Council and North Shore Arts front with exhibition prepare to move into their new digs, a storeand workshop space and Avenue. joint offices at 335 Lonsdale The two groups, which are often confused with each other in the minds of the public, have unique mandates and objectives. But both are extremely dedicated to improving arts programs and administration in North Vancouver. Their new home is bringing the two groups together in what they expect will add to the delivery of arts services for North Shore residents and the extremely diverse arts community. In existence for 31 years now, the North Vancouver Arts Council was formed to enable emerging and accomplished artists of all disciplines to build a strong community through the arts. It is a non-profit organization with a growing membership of more than 300. Its stakeholders are the members, the City and District of North Vancouver, the provincial government, and the community. Its core funding comes from the two municipalities as well from as an operating grant from the B.C. Arts Council, membership dues, and programs. The North Vancouver Arts Council has a proud history of accomplishments over the years, not the least of which is the preservation of the former city hall and North Vancouver School into what is now the Presentation House Arts Centre. The Arts Council created a scholarship fund for art students at Capilano College and the Youth Cultural Development Endowment Fund, and it was instrumental in the creation of thetri-municipal North Shore Arts Commission designed to assist local governments in the development and promotion of arts and culture in their communities. The council also runs myriad projects and programs, from Art Rental and the monthly art exhibitions at North Van District Hall to three juried annual arts and craft fairs; production of the visual arts exhibition at the annual FANS Award evening; annual lantern-making 20 January | February