It remains to be seen if Drink and Ink at the the Cranberry Motor Inn neighbourhood pub, also known as the Cran Bar, will become as important to Powell River’s art scene as New York’s Cedar Tavern was to abstract expressionism and beat writers in the ‘50s and ‘60s.
Thursday, May 26, was only the second week for the informal gathering and, according to local artists and Drink and Ink instigators PJ Kelly and Brad Collins, anything could happen.
“PJ and I talked about getting some people around a table and doing more jamming of stuff because it’s a valuable artistic exercise, being able to spontaneously make things without making it an intimidating prospect,” said Collins.
Abstractionists Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning and writers such as Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac gathered at Cedar because it was in the bohemian neighbourhood of Greenwich Village, the drinks were cheap and there were no businesspeople or tourists.
According to Kelly, she picked the Cran Bar because she lives across the street.
On the second night of Drink and Ink, seven sketchers sat around a large table in the back room of the pub.
“I don’t actually drink, but I like a reason to go to a bar. I like to sit and draw,” said Kelly.
Drink and Ink is a social gathering and not exclusive to artists, said Kelly.
“If you’re uncomfortable talking, you can focus on your drawing, and if you’re comfortable talking, you can talk,” she said, “and if you’re not comfortable drawing, we’re doing something where everybody does a separate piece of the drawing to get everyone involved, so you’re not intimidated.”
According to Collins, many artists work in isolation and it can be unhealthy. Drink and Ink, he said, allows him to sit around a table with some people, take a blank sheet of paper and see what happens.
“It’s for my own sanity as well,” he said.
Kelly got the idea from Victoria, where she was born and raised, and where several of these types of gatherings happen.
“It’s a great thing for Powell River because it’s a small enough town that if there’s a circle of people who are interested in it, and they’re available on a Thursday night, they’ll come,” she said. “It’s very relaxing and therapeutic, a chance to drink and a chance for us to gather.”
Ink and Drink takes place Thursday nights at Cranberry Motor Inn, 5728 Manson Avenue, starting at 7 pm.
