Exhibition of Works Chosen by Former Senior Curator—Historical
Showcases Immense Range of Gallery’s Collection
The Vancouver Art Gallery proudly showcases the span of its rich permanent collection through an exhibition of nearly ninety works including paintings, drawings, photographs, and sculptures in A Curator’s View: Ian Thom Selects, on view September 22, 2018 to March 17, 2019.
Since the Gallery’s establishment in 1931, its permanent collection has become the most comprehensive resource for visual culture in British Columbia. Building on the collection’s historical and contemporary strengths, the Gallery continues to steward acquisitions through donation and purchase. Currently, its collection comprises of close to 12,000 works, hundreds of which were stewarded by former Senior Curator—Historical Ian Thom during his thirty-three year tenure.
The Gallery’s permanent collection boasts the world’s most significant collection of work by Canadian artist Emily Carr. A number of these works can be seen in A Curator’s View: Ian Thom Selects, which unites historical and contemporary art works including examples of Pop, abstraction, portraiture and landscape. Local, national and international artists are featured, including Henri Beau, Emily Carr, Robert Davidson, Gathie Falk, Leon Golub, David Hockney, Ann Kipling, Beatrice Lennie, David Milne, Paul Peel, George Segal, Graham Sutherland, Andy Warhol, John Vanderpant and Zacherie Vincent, among others.
From Thom’s vantage point, this exhibition provides a glimpse into the Gallery’s process for pursuing works for acquisition and presentation. Such insights will be revealed in an audio guide accompanying the exhibition, in which Thom speaks about the works and the curatorial approach to considering them for the collection.
“This special exhibition demonstrates the vast scope of the Gallery’s permanent collection,” says Kathleen S. Bartels, Director of the Vancouver Art Gallery. “From Canadian historic masterpieces, to Pop art sculpture and Indigenous carving, visitors will discover works that together span more than two centuries.”
A Curator’s View: Ian Thom Selects is organized by the Vancouver Art Gallery and curated by Ian M. Thom, former Senior Curator–Historical.
Public Program for A Curator’s View: Ian Thom Selects:
- Curator’s Tour with Ian Thom on Tuesday, September 25 at 7:00 PM. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear Ian Thom, former Senior Curator—Historical, reveal his fascination with the Gallery’s rich permanent collection. Free for members or with Gallery admission.
For more up-to-date information on Public Programs, visit vanartgallery.bc.ca
About the Vancouver Art Gallery (vanartgallery.bc.ca)
Founded in 1931, the Vancouver Art Gallery is recognized as one of North America’s most respected and innovative visual arts institutions. The Gallery’s ground-breaking exhibitions, extensive public programs, and emphasis on advancing scholarship all focus on historical and contemporary art from British Columbia and around the world. Special attention is paid to the accomplishments of Indigenous artists, as well as to the arts of the Asia Pacific region—through the Institute of Asian Art that the Gallery founded in 2014. The Gallery’s programs also explore the impacts of images in the larger sphere of visual culture, design and architecture.
The Vancouver Art Gallery is a 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 traditional, ancestral, and unceded Coast Salish territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-waututh) peoples and is respectful of the Indigenous stewards of the land it occupies, whose rich cultures are fundamental to artistic life in Vancouver and to the work of the Gallery.
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Image 1 – Lawren Harris, Tamarack Swamp, Algoma, 1920, oil on canvas, Collection of the Vancouver Art Gallery, Gift of Mrs. Margaret H. Knox, Photo: Trevor Mills, Vancouver Art Gallery
Image 2 – Jock Macdonald, Fall (Modality 16), 1937, oil on canvas, Collection of the Vancouver Art Gallery, Acquisition Fund, Photo: Vancouver Art Gallery
