This weekend marks another year of the Pembina Valley Studio Tour, a time when artists from all over the region open their doors to let people explore their world.

For Desiree Penner, who's originally from Elm Creek, this year's tour is a bit of a homecoming.

"I'm gallery attendant at Golden Prairie Arts Council in Carman, Manitoba, and so I'll have my booth and all of my wonderful creative things at the gallery in one of the back classrooms."

Penner was inspired by the creatures in B.C while completing her residency in Duncan, on Vancouver Island.

She works in mostly watercolour painting, but also likes to dabble in lino cutting, acrylic painting, and a variety of other mediums.

"This March, kind of just before COVID hit Canada, I participated in a month-long artist residency in the West coast of Canada . . . While I was there, I painted a lot of orca whales. I had the honour and the privilege of seeing them in the wild while I was out there which inspired the collection, and I just continued to paint and paint the orcas."

Since then Penner has branched out to other marine creatures like seals, sea lions, and eventually humpback whales.

"As for local love, previously I was painting a lot of cabins in Manitoba . . . I had a one-week long exhibition at the Golden Prairie Arts Council so I brought my orca whale paintings. Most of them I did on the island but a few of them I've done since."

For her, sharing art with people from home in this way is essential to the health of the community.

"It was really a beautiful experience to show my art in my local town just so that the people that knew me as I was growing up had a better frame of reference about where I was and what I was doing now. As opposed to maybe some of them just remembering me as the girl painting backdrops for the drama plays. This way they could see me in a more professional light as an artist."

This is another reason Penner believes events like the Studio Tour are important for the local arts.

"This is something that is carrying on though it's slightly modified. A lot of artists are having their art or their goods in the garage or front lawn. I think it's still a really excellent opportunity for people to have a reason to get out and also talk with the artists . . . it's a beautiful part of the process too."

Desiree Penner will be stationed at the Golden Prairie Arts Council from Saturday, Sept 12 at 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and Sunday, Sept 13 at 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Penner will have all sorts of greeting cards, pillowcases, and original artworks for sale during the Pembina Valley Studio Tour.