The works of Langley artists Suzanne Northcott, Doris Auxier, and Jeff Warren will continue to be on display at the Evergreen Cultural Centre in Coquitlam until mid-September.

This trio of local artists kicked off the exhibit last month, called Transformation and Memory: Endangered Spaces.

In the public sphere, numerous groups, massive and miniscule, municipal and national, argue ardently for the protection of endangered spaces. But, looking past the polarized debate between these groups and those who wish to destroy and redevelop spaces, this social environmental phenomenon and its manifestation present an often unexplored complexity.

The question of what is inside these endangered ecological spaces, how society preserves them and the way their natural history relates to human history provides not only a way to explore these environments, but also a way to dissect and examine the concept of preservation, of protecting spaces, said Northcott.

Transformation and Memory: Endangered Spaces is an open ended exploration of these concepts and of these spaces. In essence, the artists want to examine the history and substance of eco spaces while focusing on two particular sites: the Langley Bog and Colony Farm.

All three artists are interested in the natural histories of these eco spaces which are rife with human contact. Colony Farm was cleared and run, in large part, by the patients of the Riverview Mental Health Facility and the Langley Bog was mined for peat moss between 1958 and 1980. With their own distinct style and practice, each artist investigates these protected sites.

Cookbooks up for grabs

A philanthropic group of women who share a passion for food are raising funds for scholarships through the sale of cookbooks, and a team will be in Langley marketing their wares next week.

The B.C. chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier is a society of professional women who come together with the purpose of promoting the understanding, appreciation, and knowledge of food, wine, hospitality, and nutrition.

And it’s this group that is participating in Well Seasoned gourmet food store’s annual open house on Wednesday, Sept. 1, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. where they will sell from their collection of rare and unique cookbooks.

Hundreds of cookbooks have been collected by Les Dames d’Escoffier, including special editions, publisher’s proofs, collector’s items, and celebrity chef books – some new and many “gently loved” – that will be for sale next week, with all proceeds to the scholarship fund.

The event is being hosted by shop owner Angie Quaale, at her Well Seasoned store and cooking school, 20771 Langley Bypass.

Dancers take Vegas by storm

Members of a local dance school travelled to the entertainment capital of the world – namely Las Vegas, Nevada – last month to compete in a national dance competition, and scooped up an armful of awards.

All In One Dance Company is owned and operated by a mother and her two daughters, and consists of dancers ranging from four years old to adult.

“Normally, dance groups must pre-qualify at the regional competition level, only the first place winners go to the nationals,” explained Suzanne Balamatowski, the matriarch of the family business.

“However, we sent in videos of our dance groups and they were so impressed with our dancers they accepted our dance groups at the national level,” she said. “It was an amazing honour.”

It has been a difficult year for the studio, with several dance injuries, deaths, and several dancers unable to travel to Las Vegas, said Balamatowski’s daughter Aimee Fauteux, also an owner of All In One Dance Co.

“Our dancers had to learn new choreography just two weeks before our trip,” Aimee said. “It was a lot for our young dancers but they persevered. Our dancers’ hard work, dedication, and commitment prepared them for this competition.”

Cherie Fauteux, Balamatowski’s other daughter and business partner, said she couldn’t be more proud of the dancers.

“Our dancers are amazing,” she said. “They lit up the stage in Las Vegas when they danced. They had great energy, facials, and stage presence: all the things a dancer should have.”

Five young All In One Dance Company dancers, Jayden, Victoria, Cohel, Cassidy and Kaden from were chosen along with 50 other dancers from the United States to perform in finale.

“The practices were early they started at 7:30 a.m. each day even when they would compete at 9 p.m. the night before,” Cherie explained.

“But our dancers didn’t complain. They would be waiting in the lobby each day all bright-eyed and ready to dance their hearts out. They were so excited and honour to be a part of this exciting event”, Balamatowski added.

The judges apparently loved the Langley-Surrey group, saying how original the Canadians were, and commenting on how strong dance is “across the border,” said Mom.

All In One Dance Company’s dancers came home with nine trophies. Two trophies were awarded for the nationals highest overall score in their age category, plus the other seven other trophies were for first and second wins place in the dance category.

“The dancers cleaned up at this competition,” said Cherie.

All three instructors commended their dancers, and said they’re looking forward to travelling to Mexico next year, performing on a cruise.

“The whole experience was amazing… several dance companies at the competition would stop us and tell us how good our dancers performed and how original our choreography was,” said Aimee.

“It was an amazing and inspirational dance experience. Our dancers grew closer as a group they learned how to overcome adversity and to keep forging ahead even when it seemed to difficult or impossible,” said Cherie.