After reading guest contributor Dion Kliner’s post about Darcy Mann’s October exhibition in Vancouver, a reader suggested that we write about what’s going on in Vancouver NOW. “This show is over, closed, fin, st�ngt, in the past,” our grumpy reader wrote. “Arriving in Van I�d like to know what�s here�.” So I asked Dion for some recommendations. Here’s what he told me:
Vancouver has distinguished itself to the contemporary art world primarily through photoconceptualism (Jeff Wall, Rodney Graham, Ian Wallace, Stan Douglas, Ken Lum, Roy Arden, etc.). Considering how long ago the Vancouver School began developing, it’s somewhat strange that Oct 1 – Nov 15 marks Vancouver’s first annual Capture Photography Festival. As a result a lot of the galleries are participating and showing photography.
I’m not endorsing all the exhibitions up right now, but I’d recommend the following galleries as being the most reliable for solid contemporary art in Vancouver.The Vancouver Art Gallery is Vancouver’s version of a museum. Why it’s not called The Vancouver Museum I’ve never figured out.The Contemporary Art Gallery shows local and international artists.Equinox has recently moved to and renovated an industrial building in what is a burgeoning gallery neighborhood in Vancouver. It’s the most Dia-esque of Vancouver’s galleries; noticeable in its color scheme, and even the reveal at the bottom of the walls.Monte Clark shares the same building as Equinox.[Image at top: Alison Yip @ Monte Clark through November 30, 2013]
Catriona Jeffries and Macaulay & Co. Fine Art are close by to Equinox. At Jeffries expect to see the most Vancouverish of what is considered “Vancouver” art besides photography. [Image above: Neil Campbell @ Macaulay & Co. Fine Art, through December 14, 2013]gallery jones has a good photography show opening November 9th.
Republic [Image above: Lyse Lemieux is represented by Republic. Image courtesy of their website]The Rennie Collection is a private museum housed in the renovated Wing Sang building, the oldest in Chinatown. Public viewing is only by reservation and on guided tours, but it’s free. You can reserve a date and time on the Rennie website. Space and times are limited so it’s best to do it as soon as possible.I hope this helps, Sharon.Dion
Thanks for the intel, Dion. Keep in touch.
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Related posts:
Darcy Mann: A tangle of layers (2013)
Ben Reeves: Super-impasto in Vancouver (2008)
Questioning Canadian painting’s carte blanche (2008)
Thank you! I'm excited to check out what's happening there.