On April 27, the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria (AGGV) presents two new permanent galleries, titled A View From Here: Reimagining the AGGV Collections, to showcase the strength of the galleryB次元官网网址檚 permanent collection.
What many donB次元官网网址檛 realize is AGGV has the largest public art collection in British Columbia, said Steven McNeil, chief curator and director of collections and exhibitions. AGGVB次元官网网址檚 full collection has more than 23,000 works of art, including an extensive Asian collection, and popular paintings by treasured Canadian painters like Emily Carr.
B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 really the reason for doing this permanent collection installation is we really have extraordinary collections and theyB次元官网网址檙e not visible to the public in any way,B次元官网网址� McNeil said.
One of the new galleries will focus on Asian art and the other will focus on Indigenous and Canadian artists, from the 19th century to the present. The exhibition runs through April 27, 2029.
This is one of McNeilB次元官网网址檚 major projects since taking on the role a year and a half ago after moving from New Brunswick.
B次元官网网址�I tried to pick works that would be the best-known works in our collection or things that people would want to see when they visit Victoria, which currently arenB次元官网网址檛 on display.
B次元官网网址淲e get a lot of feedback since IB次元官网网址檝e started. Especially during the summer, tourists coming to town wanting to see Emily Carr. So our historical collection wonB次元官网网址檛 be exclusively Emily Carr, but itB次元官网网址檒l give us a chance to show some great works by her B次元官网网址� SheB次元官网网址檚 from here, so we should be proud of it.B次元官网网址�
AGGVB次元官网网址檚 extensive Asian collection is thanks in part to VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 geographical port location and to Asian art being collected at the gallery since the beginning, McNeil said.
B次元官网网址淭he gallery opened in 1951 and some of our first acquisitions were Japanese woodblock prints,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淎nd weB次元官网网址檝e been collecting Asian art ever since.B次元官网网址�
AGGV curator of Asian art, Dr. Heng Wu, and AGGV assistant curator, Mel Granley, are co-curating the new galleries.
The Asian gallery will display around 400 objects B次元官网网址� including jade, ceramics, painting, ivory, and Yixing purple clay teapots B次元官网网址� and the Canadian gallery will display around 150 B次元官网网址� including works by Emily Carr, Arthur Lismer, A.Y. Jackson and more. Pieces will rotate in and out.
Most of the galleryB次元官网网址檚 collection is thanks to donations, McNeil added.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 really a product of peopleB次元官网网址檚 generosity and weB次元官网网址檙e still for the most part supported by individual donors to this day.B次元官网网址�
The exhibition opening takes place on April 27 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Exhibition openings are included with admission or free with membership.
The exhibition can also be seen for free on any of the AGGVB次元官网网址檚 Feel Free days, supported by TD.
A View From Here runs through April 27, 2029.
