VANCOUVER, British Columbia &--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Traditional Coast Salish Lands, including the Musqueam (xwməθkwəy'əm), Squamish (Sḵwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw) and Tsleil-Waututh (səl'ilw'ətaʔɬ) Nations.
Today, the Vancouver Art Gallery is pleased to announce that it will receive $25 million in federal funding from Infrastructure Canada through the Green and Inclusive Community Buildings (GICB) program, as well as an additional $4.3 million from the Department of Canadian Heritage. The capital will go towards aspects of the building that will help achieve the Vancouver Art Gallery’s vision of creating a safe and inclusive space for all, while meeting world-class sustainability standards. The new Gallery is planned to open in 2027.
“The new the Chan Centre for Visual Arts will be a state-of-the-art cultural facility that will exemplify the best of socially inclusive and eco-friendly projects, encouraging community connections in a sustainable environment. Community-focused and accessible, the Centre will promote cultural and artistic engagement, while meeting Passive House standards—the green ideal for clean, energy-efficient building design,” says the Honourable Hedy Fry, MP for Vancouver Centre, on behalf of the Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities.
The Green and Inclusive Community Buildings program aims to build more community buildings that are energy-efficient, lower carbon, more resilient and higher performing. The new Vancouver Art Gallery at the Chan Centre for Visual Arts will be the first Passive House art gallery in North America and will be the most environmentally sustainable art museum in Canada.
“The funding from Infrastructure Canada and the Department of Canadian Heritage contributes to the resources necessary to make the new Vancouver Art Gallery an international leader in environmental sustainability,” says Anthony Kiendl, CEO and Director of Vancouver Art Gallery. “The new Gallery is poised to be a platform to amplify the voices of local and international artists, Indigenous and culturally diverse communities, and will be a community gathering place for people of all ages, cultures and backgrounds to meet and share ideas.”
The Gallery is envisioned to be a green, art-focused community hub that will encourage—through artistic engagement—collaboration and understanding between disparate groups across the region and beyond. Notable features in the new building include the Centre for Early Childhood Education (art-focused daycare for children 5 years and under), a multi-purpose Indigenous Community House, a multi-purpose theatre and numerous outdoor spaces for public art and interaction.
“Cultural spaces and institutions like the Vancouver Art Gallery play an important role in supporting vibrant and inclusive communities. They connect the past with the present through exhibits that inform and inspire, they safeguard priceless artefacts and works of art, and they promote the talent of our Canadian artists and creators,” says the Honourable Pablo Rodriguez, Minister of Canadian Heritage. “This investment brings the Chan Centre for the Visual Arts to the next level, from a rendering on paper to breaking ground on a trailblazing facility of which all British Columbians can be proud.”
Today’s endorsement from the Government of Canada builds upon the Vancouver Art Gallery’s multi-level support from artists, volunteers, philanthropists, the Province of British Columbia, the City of Vancouver and more since undertaking this signature project.
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About Vancouver Art Gallery
Founded in 1931, the Vancouver Art Gallery is recognized as one of North America's most innovative visual arts institutions. The Gallery's adventurous exhibitions, extensive public programs, and emphasis on advancing research all focus on historical and contemporary art from British Columbia and around the world. Special attention is given to the accomplishments of Indigenous artists, as well as to those of the Asia Pacific region. The Gallery's exhibitions also explore the impact of images in the larger sphere of visual culture, design, and architecture.
The Vancouver Art Gallery is a charitable not-for-profit organization supported by its members, individual donors, corporate funders, foundations, the City of Vancouver, the Province of British Columbia through the BC Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts.
The Vancouver Art Gallery is situated on the ancestral and unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy'əm (Musqueam), Sḵwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, and is respectful of the Indigenous stewards of the land it occupies, whose rich cultures are fundamental to artistic life in Vancouver and the work of the Gallery. Learn more at vanartgallery.bc.ca.
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