Photo submitted

WENDY NOEL, as artistic harpist Donna, serenades a serene Jay Brazeau (Ralph) | in Blowin’ on
Bowen, at the Aste Club Mainstage until Jan. 8.

Local sculptor among best in world

“RANGING IN price from $1,000 to.”

$10,000, they’ re_not. the ‘type of

“trinkets ‘ you're’ likely to use: as’
tocking ¢ “stuffers: “alongside
miniatures of Papa Smurf.’ -

Greg Potter
NOW! Reporter

But.if you're in the’ market for

rare:and upscale art, North Van-

couver jade’ sculptor Lyle Sopel
“tay have just what you're looking
‘ for.in. his : show,” The. Stone’ of

‘Heaven, running at the Whistler.

° Village Art Gallery until Jan. 5.
“o“In’ Canada’ we. have © the
vhighest level and greatest amount

f jade in the. world,”’ says the.41-
; year-old artist. ~

. knows —

» “But: jade sculptors are very
rare,”
In fact, Sopel'is — as far as he
the only Canadian artist
that carves’ jade Yall -time, though
‘the medium has been used exten-
sively in China for 6,000 years.
“1 started carving: it 20 years
ago when it was a new medium in
Canada,”" he says. “Nobody : had

really experimented with it, so it.

was pretly much my own experi-
ment.”

{t proved, of course, a success
and these days Sopel often takes
time out’ during the summer

- months to fly to Dees Lake near

the Yukon border to choose his
boulders, many of them the size of
dump trucks,

“Wil go through something like

Mon-Sat 7pm-2am

Sun 7pm-Midnight

six tonnes in a year,’ he says. ‘It
sounds like a lot, but out ofthat
you might get maybe’ half-a-dozen
good boulders.
the carving process itself isn't
actly a slice, either (excuse the
pun). jade is harder than steel and
must be worked with special
diamond-tipped tools.

Theme wise, Sopel.tends toward,

North American animal motifs; a
subject. that, he says, reflects
human emotions and human im-
ages in animal form.”

Hailed by National. Geographic
magazine as one of the best con-
temporary jade sculptors in the
world, Sopel’s: work has been
commissioned and nurchased by
prestigious corporate #nd private
collectors.

- Dewey, PARDIE & HOWE.

ati552. Marine Drive, West Vancouver

Mr. Dewey in invites you to come join us for

Door charge $12.00 includes Champagne & Hors d’oeuvres

PHONE 925-HOWE
(925-4693)

a collection of anecdotes and stories
by longtime North Vancouver physican

DR. C.G. M°NEILL

available now at $29.95 from

MCNEWS
1460 Lonsdale, North Vancouver

ATTENTION
WEST VANCOUVER,
RESIDENTS —

Garbage Collection and Blue Box
Pick-up Days will remain unchanged
throughout the holidays.

VANCOUVER

All for $7, now!

Available at 7-11, London Drugs and IGA
$9.50 at the gate GST included

Kids free! 12 and under.

NEW YEAR’S EVE, 6:30-MIDNIGHT
at the PNE

it’s eight parties in one!

« Lantern Procession to the Ferris Wheel
* Family Country Countdown

Concert Promenade

Ice Palace

First Night Theatre

Countdown Garden

The Coliseum First Skate

Kids Street Carnivai ‘.

An alcohol-free event.
For further information call Talking Yellow Pages 299-4000, and press 3216