Vancouver Art Gallery
Encyclopedia
The Vancouver Art Gallery (VAG) is the fifth-largest art gallery
in Canada
and the largest in Western Canada. It is located at 750 Hornby Street in Vancouver
, British Columbia
. Its permanent collection of about 10,000 artworks includes more than 200 major works by Emily Carr
, the Group of Seven
, Jeff Wall
and Marc Chagall
.
The VAG was founded in 1931 and had its first home at 1145 West Georgia Street
. In 1983 it moved to the Hornby Street location, the former provincial courthouse
. It was renovated at a cost of $20 million by architect Arthur Erickson
, which completed his modern three city-block Robson Square
complex. The Gallery connects to the rest of the complex via an underground passage below Robson Street
to an outdoor plaza
, restaurants, the University of British Columbia
's downtown satellite campus, government offices, and the new Law Courts
at the southern end.
The VAG has 41400 square feet (3,846.2 m²) of exhibition space and about 10,000 works in its collection, most notably its Emily Carr collection. It has also amassed a significant collection of photographs. In addition to exhibitions of its own collection, the VAG regularly hosts touring exhibitions. The VAG regularly sponsors or hosts a number of public programmes and lectures.
The VAG is home to a gift shop
, a café, and a library
.
In March 2007, the 2010 Olympic countdown clock was placed in the front lawn of the VAG. It was open for free for the public to see. The clock has since been disassembled, with one half going to BC Place and the other to Whistler Village.
The VAG is located in the former main courthouse for Vancouver. The original 165000 square feet (15,329 m²) neoclassical
building was designed by Francis Rattenbury
after winning a design competition in 1905. Rattenbury also designed the British Columbia Parliament Buildings
and the Empress Hotel
in Victoria
.
The design includes ionic columns, a central dome
, formal portico
s, and ornate stonework. The building was constructed using marble
imported from Alaska
, Tennessee
and Vermont
. The new building was constructed in 1906 and replaced the previous courthouse located at Victory Square
. At the time, the building contained 18 courtrooms.
An annex designed by Thomas Hooper was added to the western side of the building in 1912. The Annex Building is the only part of the VAG that was not converted to use as an art gallery. It was declared a heritage
site and retains the original judges' benches and walls as they were when the building was a courthouse.
On the Georgia Street side of the building is the Centennial Fountain. This fountain was installed in 1966 to commemorate the centennial of the union of the colonies of Vancouver Island
and British Columbia
.
The building was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1980. Both the main and annex portions of the building are municipally designated "A" heritage structures.
The steps on both the Robson Street
and Georgia Street sides of the building are a popular gathering spot for protest
rallies. The Georgia Street side is also a popular place in the summertime for people to relax or socialize.
in British Columbia. Established in 1931 with the founding of the Gallery, the collection grows by several hundred works every year. It is a principal repository of works produced in this region, as well as related works by other Canadian and international artists.
To celebrate the gallery's 75th anniversary, it published an on-line catalogue that features 75 works from its collection.
, block formerly occupied by a bus depot on the corner of Cambie and Georgia streets, across from the Queen Elizabeth Theatre
. The new building would have been about 30000 square metres (35,879.7 sq yd), almost 10 times the current building size, and would include more gallery space for the permanent collection now in storage, a larger exhibit space for visiting international works, more children's and community programming and an improved storage and display environment.
The gallery planned to approach city council soon in early 2008 for official handover of the site. Construction would have begun after the 2010 Olympics with an opening tentatively scheduled for 2013. The gallery was expected to cost in the hundreds of millions of dollars, and the gallery hoped to secure funding from provincial and federal governments as well as private donors.
In May 2008, however, a different site was designated as the chosen site for the new gallery on land occupied until now by the Plaza of Nations
near BC Place, and will double its size to 320000 square feet (29,729 m²). A call for designs for the new gallery will go out to architects in the fall of 2008. Construction is expected to start in 2011, with an opening likely in 2013.
, as well as flash mob
s, the Zombie Walk
, Pro-Marijuana rallies, and numerous environmental demonstrations. It is also the central gathering point of Vancouver's 420
celebration, annually.
Art gallery
An art gallery or art museum is a building or space for the exhibition of art, usually visual art.Museums can be public or private, but what distinguishes a museum is the ownership of a collection...
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and the largest in Western Canada. It is located at 750 Hornby Street in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. Its permanent collection of about 10,000 artworks includes more than 200 major works by Emily Carr
Emily Carr
Emily Carr was a Canadian artist and writer heavily inspired by the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast. One of the first painters in Canada to adopt a post-impressionist painting style, Carr did not receive widespread recognition for her work until later in her life...
, the Group of Seven
Group of Seven (artists)
The Group of Seven, sometimes known as the Algonquin school, were a group of Canadian landscape painters from 1920-1933, originally consisting of Franklin Carmichael , Lawren Harris , A. Y. Jackson , Franz Johnston , Arthur Lismer , J. E. H. MacDonald , and Frederick Varley...
, Jeff Wall
Jeff Wall
Jeffrey "Jeff" Wall, OC, RSA is a Canadian artist best known for his large-scale back-lit cibachrome photographs and art-historical writing. Wall has been a key figure in Vancouver's art scene since the early-1970s...
and Marc Chagall
Marc Chagall
Marc Chagall Art critic Robert Hughes referred to Chagall as "the quintessential Jewish artist of the twentieth century."According to art historian Michael J...
.
Gallery
Georgia Street
Georgia Street is an east-west street in the cities of Vancouver and Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. Its section in Downtown Vancouver, designated West Georgia Street, serves as one of the primary streets for the financial and central business districts, and is the major transportation corridor...
. In 1983 it moved to the Hornby Street location, the former provincial courthouse
Courthouse
A courthouse is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English speaking countries, buildings which house courts of law are simply...
. It was renovated at a cost of $20 million by architect Arthur Erickson
Arthur Erickson
Arthur Charles Erickson, was a Canadian architect and urban planner. He studied Asian languages at the University of British Columbia, and later earned a degree in architecture from McGill University.-Biography:...
, which completed his modern three city-block Robson Square
Robson Square
Robson Square is a landmark civic centre and public plaza of modernist concrete, located in Downtown Vancouver, British Columbia. It is the site of the Provincial Law Courts, UBC Robson Square, government office buildings, and public space connecting the newer development to the Vancouver Art...
complex. The Gallery connects to the rest of the complex via an underground passage below Robson Street
Robson Street
Robson Street is a major southeast-northwest thoroughfare in downtown and West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Its core commercial blocks from Burrard Street to Jervis are also known as Robsonstrasse. Its name honours John Robson, a major figure in British Columbia's entry into the...
to an outdoor plaza
Plaza
Plaza is a Spanish word related to "field" which describes an open urban public space, such as a city square. All through Spanish America, the plaza mayor of each center of administration held three closely related institutions: the cathedral, the cabildo or administrative center, which might be...
, restaurants, the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
's downtown satellite campus, government offices, and the new Law Courts
Law Courts (Vancouver)
thumb|right|250px|Main Entry from Hornby and Nelson Streetsthumb|right|200px|Interior AtriumThe Law Courts building is part of the landmark Robson Square complex in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It was designed by renowned Canadian architect Arthur Erickson...
at the southern end.
The VAG has 41400 square feet (3,846.2 m²) of exhibition space and about 10,000 works in its collection, most notably its Emily Carr collection. It has also amassed a significant collection of photographs. In addition to exhibitions of its own collection, the VAG regularly hosts touring exhibitions. The VAG regularly sponsors or hosts a number of public programmes and lectures.
The VAG is home to a gift shop
Gift shop
A gift shop is a store primarily selling souvenirs relating to a particular topic or theme. The items sold often include coffee mugs, stuffed animals, t-shirts, postcards, handmade collections and other souvenirs....
, a café, and a library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
.
In March 2007, the 2010 Olympic countdown clock was placed in the front lawn of the VAG. It was open for free for the public to see. The clock has since been disassembled, with one half going to BC Place and the other to Whistler Village.
Building
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
building was designed by Francis Rattenbury
Francis Rattenbury
Francis Mawson Rattenbury was an architect born in England, although most of his career was spent in British Columbia, Canada where he designed many notable buildings. Divorced amid scandal, he was murdered in England at the age of 68 by his second wife's lover.- Architectural career :Rattenbury...
after winning a design competition in 1905. Rattenbury also designed the British Columbia Parliament Buildings
British Columbia Parliament Buildings
The British Columbia Parliament Buildings are located in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada and are home to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia....
and the Empress Hotel
The Empress (Hotel)
The Fairmont Empress is one of the oldest and most famous hotels in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Located on Government Street facing the Inner Harbour, the Empress has become an iconic symbol for the city itself...
in Victoria
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...
.
The design includes ionic columns, a central dome
Dome
A dome is a structural element of architecture that resembles the hollow upper half of a sphere. Dome structures made of various materials have a long architectural lineage extending into prehistory....
, formal portico
Portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
s, and ornate stonework. The building was constructed using marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
imported from Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
and Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
. The new building was constructed in 1906 and replaced the previous courthouse located at Victory Square
Victory Square, Vancouver
Victory Square is a park in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The square is bordered by West Hastings Street to the northeast, West Pender Street to the southwest, Cambie Street to the southeast, and Hamilton Street to the northwest...
. At the time, the building contained 18 courtrooms.
An annex designed by Thomas Hooper was added to the western side of the building in 1912. The Annex Building is the only part of the VAG that was not converted to use as an art gallery. It was declared a heritage
Cultural heritage
Cultural heritage is the legacy of physical artifacts and intangible attributes of a group or society that are inherited from past generations, maintained in the present and bestowed for the benefit of future generations...
site and retains the original judges' benches and walls as they were when the building was a courthouse.
On the Georgia Street side of the building is the Centennial Fountain. This fountain was installed in 1966 to commemorate the centennial of the union of the colonies of Vancouver Island
Colony of Vancouver Island
The Colony of Vancouver Island , was a crown colony of British North America from 1849 to 1866, after which it was united with British Columbia. The united colony joined the Dominion of Canada through Confederation in 1871...
and British Columbia
Colony of British Columbia
The Colony of British Columbia was a crown colony in British North America from 1858 until 1866. At its creation, it physically constituted approximately half the present day Canadian province of British Columbia, since it did not include the Colony of Vancouver Island, the vast and still largely...
.
The building was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1980. Both the main and annex portions of the building are municipally designated "A" heritage structures.
The steps on both the Robson Street
Robson Street
Robson Street is a major southeast-northwest thoroughfare in downtown and West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Its core commercial blocks from Burrard Street to Jervis are also known as Robsonstrasse. Its name honours John Robson, a major figure in British Columbia's entry into the...
and Georgia Street sides of the building are a popular gathering spot for protest
Protest
A protest is an expression of objection, by words or by actions, to particular events, policies or situations. Protests can take many different forms, from individual statements to mass demonstrations...
rallies. The Georgia Street side is also a popular place in the summertime for people to relax or socialize.
Collection
The Vancouver Art Gallery's collection of about 10,000 works of art represents the most comprehensive resource for visual cultureVisual culture
Visual Culture as an academic subject is a field of study that generally includes some combination of cultural studies, art history, critical theory, philosophy, and anthropology, by focusing on aspects of culture that rely on visual images.- Overview :...
in British Columbia. Established in 1931 with the founding of the Gallery, the collection grows by several hundred works every year. It is a principal repository of works produced in this region, as well as related works by other Canadian and international artists.
To celebrate the gallery's 75th anniversary, it published an on-line catalogue that features 75 works from its collection.
Future plans
In November 2007, the gallery announced plans to move to a new building at Larwill ParkLarwill Park
Larwill Park, also known as the Cambie Street Grounds, is a former park and sporting field in what is now downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada...
, block formerly occupied by a bus depot on the corner of Cambie and Georgia streets, across from the Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Queen Elizabeth Theatre
The Queen Elizabeth Theatre is a performing arts venue in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Along with the Orpheum and the Vancouver Playhouse, it is one of three facilities operated by the Vancouver Civic Theatres Department .Formerly the home of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, which...
. The new building would have been about 30000 square metres (35,879.7 sq yd), almost 10 times the current building size, and would include more gallery space for the permanent collection now in storage, a larger exhibit space for visiting international works, more children's and community programming and an improved storage and display environment.
The gallery planned to approach city council soon in early 2008 for official handover of the site. Construction would have begun after the 2010 Olympics with an opening tentatively scheduled for 2013. The gallery was expected to cost in the hundreds of millions of dollars, and the gallery hoped to secure funding from provincial and federal governments as well as private donors.
In May 2008, however, a different site was designated as the chosen site for the new gallery on land occupied until now by the Plaza of Nations
Plaza of Nations
The Plaza of Nations was an entertainment complex located on the northeast shore of False Creek in Vancouver, British Columbia.It was part of the British Columbia Pavilion during Expo '86, and along with Science World, Canada Place, and the Roundhouse Community Centre is one of the remaining...
near BC Place, and will double its size to 320000 square feet (29,729 m²). A call for designs for the new gallery will go out to architects in the fall of 2008. Construction is expected to start in 2011, with an opening likely in 2013.
Gathering place
A regular gathering spot for protests and demonstrations, the Vancouver Art Gallery's lawn and steps hosts gatherings several times a week. The Vancouver Art Gallery is the monthly meeting spot for Vancouver's Critical MassCritical Mass
Critical Mass is a cycling event typically held on the last Friday of every month in over 300 cities around the world. The ride was originally founded in 1992 in San Francisco. The purpose of Critical Mass is not usually formalized beyond the direct action of meeting at a set location and time and...
, as well as flash mob
Flash mob
A flash mob is a group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform an unusual and sometimes seemingly pointless act for a brief time, then disperse, often for the purposes of entertainment, satire, artistic expression...
s, the Zombie Walk
Zombie Walk
A zombie walk is an organized public gathering of people who dress up in zombie costumes...
, Pro-Marijuana rallies, and numerous environmental demonstrations. It is also the central gathering point of Vancouver's 420
420 (cannabis culture)
420, 4:20 or 4/20 refers to consumption of cannabis and, by extension, a way to identify oneself with cannabis subculture. The notable day for these is April 20.- Origins of terms :...
celebration, annually.