The GCBC Lounge was a surreal sight on Jan. 29 for the inaugural Dr. Sketchy’s anti-art school session in Lethbridge.
As approximately 60 would be artists clustered around an old fireplace in the GCBC Lounge concentrating on drawing a couple black leather bondage clad performance artists striking various poses, mellow ukulele music wafted through the air breaking the otherwise dead silence, punctuated only by the call of “Change” after which the models changed poses. You could almost hear the artistic wheels spinning.
“I’m overwhelmed actually. Of course we hoped we’d get that many,” said Loralee Edwards who, along with her friend Kelaine Devine, brought this Brooklyn based international program to Lethbridge — the first time anywhere in Alberta and only the fourth one in Canada. Dr. Sketchy’s is the perfect combination of  performance art and visual art, combined with music. It’s about the process of drawing rather than the work itself, which is why  some of the poses are a short as two minutes  followed by longer poses, to allow artists to stretch their artistic muscles. Dr. Sketchy’s Anti-Art School is a unique drawing program founded in 2005 by artist Molly Crabapple in Brooklyn, New York. This will be the first Alberta branch. In addition to having branches all over the U.S., United Kingdom, Asia, Europe and South America, there are Canadian branches in Winnipeg, Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal.
“ It shows there is a desire for this sort of  thing in Lethbridge,” she said.
Perhaps more apt, someone plugged in a Hank and Lily Show CD as a bed of nails was placed on the floor for the main attraction — Calgary performance artist and fashion designer Demonika, who was bustling around the crowded room checking out the work of those brave enough to show it. When it was her turn on stage, she struck numerous poses on and around the bed of 1,200 solid steel nails. She lay face down, then face down on the nails, and more impressively with the other model sitting on top of her lying on top of the nails.
“It’s very, very exciting to be part of this,” enthused Demonika, who goes by the name Danika Challand when out in the real world and off the stage.
“It’s like a ghetto version of Cirque Du Soleil,” she described adding there is a similar program in Calgary.
“It’s (Dr. Sketchy’s) is performance art, it’s not just still art. It’s a fun night,” said Demonika, who is not afraid to push the boundaries in her own art.
“ I do a lot of extreme things. If I can make the audience a little squeamish, I’ll do that,” said Demonika, who has been using the lying on a bed of nails as part of her act since 2001, when she first began creating her provocative and somewhat controversial performance pieces.
“It’s really just a matter of mind over matter. You go to your happy place, try to spread it out and just focus,” said Demonika.
The next Dr. Sketchy’s is Feb. 19 in the GCBC Lounge featuring local artist/ performance artist and belly dancing instructor  Claude. After that, they will be on the last Friday of the month in the GCBC Lounge.