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<\/a>\u201cWe have monthly speakers and a book club as well,\u201d says Harper. \u201cThe success of the house tours over the last decades have become a flagship fundraising event, often attracting over 1,000 guests.\u201d<\/p>\n
Due to the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, the house tours transitioned to a video tour.\u00a0 <\/span>The first video they did was of one mansion, but this year they set their sights higher.<\/p>\n \u201cThis year we are filming five houses that wouldn\u2019t be feasible on an in-person house tour,\u201d says Harper. \u201cSome due to location, one of them is on an island, and others due to logistics, so houses that even if we could go in person, we wouldn\u2019t see these houses.\u201d<\/p>\n The homes that were selected are unique and varied, from Modernist west-coast style to houses perched upon steep slopes; one home was designed by a well-known Victorian Modernist architect. Each home will exhibit floral art created by five local artists who are part of the Victoria Floral Artists Guild. Roger Brooks, a retired architectural photographer, provided expertise and continuity, and the production also included three local videographers.<\/p>\n \u201cYou get a personal tour with the home owner, an intimate telling of the history, what they\u2019ve done, what they liked,\u201d says Harper. \u201cIt was really about which houses would be different but not easily accessible and also, where the homeowner had an interesting story to tell about their house, with a willingness to tell them.\u201d<\/p>\n