ESTEVAN - A piece of art created out of old boards sourced from the Estevan Civic Auditorium was revealed at Affinity Place on Oct. 27.
Estevan Mayor Roy Ludwig, along with local woodwork artist Tim Dyck of Resurrected Wood Work, took down the curtain uncovering an eight by five-foot geometrical art piece, reflecting the colours and endless memories the Estevan community made at the building.
"You completed a fabulous job putting all this together and resurrecting the memory of the Civic," Ludwig said during the ceremony.
The art is made of 833 pieces of backrests, handrails, beams and other parts of the building, most of which are covered with original paint and carvings. The only colour the artist had to recreate was grey, which he also matched to the original paint.
Dyck said ever since the decision was made to demolish the Civic and he was allowed to salvage some wood from there, he knew he was going to make something for the city and its residents in memory of one of Estevan's historic symbols.
"Five years ago, when they started talking about tearing it down since it cost too much to fix, I reached out to Rod March [former Estevan parks and facilities manager] and talked to him about getting some of the wood out of there to build stuff. I'm a wood guy. I'm a woodworker, always have been, since I was like five years old," recalled Dyck, noting that he and his team ended up spending several days salvaging wood out of the Civic. "Me and my boy went in there … and started tearing off these backrests… I just took my pry bar and pried it off. It was pretty easy.
"And before I even got any wood out of there, I knew I was going to build the city something. That was my first thought to build the city something out of it. And I racked my brain, do I build tables for in here [Affinity Place] out of it and then do an epoxy overtop? ... But then when I started doing artwork, and I really love the artwork, especially the geometric designs, it was like, 'That's what I'm doing.'
"So, I approached the city [in spring 2023], and they said, 'Let's do it'," Dyck shared.
When the time came, it took him about a month of work to put the art piece together and he said it was indeed challenging.
"Lining everything up was the hardest part," Dyck said.
The Civic was built out of Douglas fir trees, sourced out of Grand Forks, B.C., one of the most valuable timber resources in the country, Dyck said.
He ended up sourcing a lot of high-quality boards of different shapes and sizes. He used a lot of it for the city's art project, as well as to complete projects around his property, and hopes to build more with what he has, not just for himself, but for others.
"The plan was to build coffee and end tables and even kitchen tables, or bars, or whatever people want," Dyck said, noting that the wood is great quality, 100 per cent preserved and also filled with history.
"It is absolutely incredible how preserved that wood is," Dyck said.
If anyone is interested in learning more about Resurrected Wood Work, they can email Dyck at [email protected] or text at 306-421-5166.
The Estevan Civic Auditorium, which was modelled after the Boston Garden arena and known for its unusual layout, was built in 1957 and loved for the atmosphere created by Estevan Bruins and their fans. After decades of great hockey, it was closed in November of 2017 due to excessively expensive repairs required and demolished in the spring of 2018.
The art commemorating Estevan Civic Auditorium will be on permanent display in the Affinity Place hallway, creating a great spot for "very Estevan" pictures.
