BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Vernon Public Art Gallery - ECPv6.15.20//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:Vernon Public Art Gallery X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Vernon Public Art Gallery REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/Vancouver BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20230312T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20231105T090000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20240310T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20241103T090000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20250309T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20251102T090000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20260308T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20261101T090000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20270314T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20271107T090000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20260213T090000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20260311T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20260109T223430Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T182330Z UID:10000220-1770973200-1773248400@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Art & Soul DESCRIPTION:SD#22 High School Students \n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith Gallery\, Up-Front Gallery\, and Community GalleryFebuary 13 – March 11\, 2026 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, Febuary 12\, from 6–8 PM \n\n\n\nThis exhibition offers a sophisticated look at how emerging artists navigate their world through visual media. Featuring a diverse range of mediums\, from traditional painting and drawing to modern digital works and sculpture\, Art & Soul fills the gallery with the energy of a new generation. These works reflect not only technical growth but also the deep personal expression and critical thinking developed in the secondary art classroom. \n\n\n\nWe invite families\, teachers\, and the community to join us in celebrating these talented students. This exhibition is a testament to the power of arts education in our schools and its role in helping young people find their voice. \n\n\n\nThe Vernon Public Art Gallery extends its deepest gratitude to the dedicated art educators across School District No. 22. Their unwavering commitment to nurturing creativity and technical skill makes this exhibition possible each year\, fostering the next generation of artists and community leaders. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/art-soul-3 CATEGORIES:2026,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Website-Featured-Image-2.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20260109T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20260207T160000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20251211T202234Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T182450Z UID:10000215-1767952800-1770480000@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Art from the Heart DESCRIPTION:SD#22 Elementary Students\n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith Gallery\, Up-Front Gallery\, and Community GalleryJanuary 9 – Febuary 7\, 2026 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Saturday\, January 10\, from 1–4 PM \n\n\n\nThe Vernon Public Art Gallery is delighted to welcome back Art from the Heart\, our annual exhibition showcasing the creativity and imagination of elementary students from School District No. 22. This community favourite celebrates the joy\, curiosity\, and honesty found in children’s art\, offering a vibrant snapshot of how young learners see and interpret the world around them. \n\n\n\nFeaturing a wide range of mediums and subjects\, Art from the Heart fills the gallery with colour\, energy\, and excitement. We invite families\, teachers\, and community members to join us in supporting these emerging young artists and celebrating the value of arts education in our schools. \n\n\n\nThe Vernon Public Art Gallery extends its deepest gratitude to the dedicated art educators across School District No. 22. Their unwavering commitment to nurturing creativity in the classroom makes this exhibition possible each year and plays a vital role in fostering the next generation of artists and community leaders. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/art-from-the-heart-3 CATEGORIES:2026,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Art-From-the-Heart-Cover.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20260109T090000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20260311T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20251121T172330Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T181926Z UID:10000212-1767949200-1773248400@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Kitchen Corner DESCRIPTION:Samuel Roy-Bois\n\n\n\nTopham Brown Memorial GalleryJanuary 8\, 2026 to March 11\, 2026 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, January 8\, from 6–8 PMArtist Talk: Saturday\, January 24\, from 1-2 PM \n\n\n\n\n \n Exhibition Publication \n\n\n\nKitchen Corner is the title of a Depression-era photograph by Walker Evans. While not adirect source for the works assembled here\, its rediscovery during the preparation of thisexhibition proved resonant. Evans’s image operates as a portrait of a context articulatedthrough objects. Documentary in nature\, it renders a modest interior where things—a frayedrag\, a slanted broom\, a patinated chair—assume the status of characters seemingly asking tobe observed\, “objects in a moment of pause between use.”1 What is striking\, however\, isthat Kitchen Corner withholds the very signifiers conventionally associated with a kitchen(no sink\, no stove). In this disjunction between title and referent\, the photograph underscoresthe complexity of representation and the capacity of objects to exceed their functionalidentity. \n\n\n\nThe works in this exhibition similarly dwell in thresholds of recognition. They positionobjects\, sculptures\, and bodies in states of indeterminacy: what reads as structure functions assupport; what appears fragmentary gestures toward wholeness; what suggests immediacyproves resistant\, even opaque. Produced over the course of eighteen months\, these workswere not initially conceived as a unified installation. Their subsequent convergence\, however\,revealed affinities of form and sensibility\, generating conditions for thought and affect thatexceed the sum of individual pieces. \n\n\n\nThe works composing this exhibition invite tension into the domain of the built environment.Each references architecture obliquely: through the evocation of house foundations\, theabstracted language of the maquette\, or vestiges of timber-frame construction. Despite theirvaried scales and spatial logics\, they converge around a shared problematic: the negotiationbetween the self and the possible. In their oscillation between recognition and estrangement\,they foreground the contingencies of agency and the fragility of ideals. Failure\, unfulfillment\,and speculation emerge not as deficiencies but as constitutive modes of experience\, openingonto a broader meditation on how subjectivity is continually shaped\, unsettled\, and redefinedthrough material encounter. \n\n\n\n1 Richon\, Olivier. Walker Evans: Kitchen Corner. MIT Press\, 2019. \n\n\n\nKitchen Corner\, 2026. (install image)\n\n\n\n\n\nBalloon (Vent)\, 2025. \n\n\n\n\n\nUnit (Arts and Gun Club)\, 2025. \n\n\n\n\n\nBalloon (Schematic)\, 2025. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/kitchen-corner CATEGORIES:2026,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Website-Featured-Image.webp END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20251017T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20251224T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250918T193634Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T182707Z UID:10000189-1760695200-1766595600@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Whispers of Home DESCRIPTION:Marzieh Homayoun\n\n\n\nCommunity GalleryOctober 17 – December 24\, 2025Opening Reception: Thursday\, October 16\, from 6–8 PMArtist Talk: Saturday\, November 15\, at 6 PM \n\n\n\nMarzieh Homayoun\, an immigrant artist from Iran whose practice draws on the delicacy of Persian miniature painting. Her work blends natural imagery with surrealist elements\, offering a unique lens on the world around her. We look forward to featuring her work in the Community Gallery this October as part of our ongoing collaboration with Mackie Lake House. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nMarzieh Homayoun\, Traces of a Life\, 2025\, ink on paper URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/mackie-lake-house-air-marzieh-homayoun CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Marzieh-Homayoun-Whispers-of-Home-Featured-Image.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20251017T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20251220T190000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250918T190518Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T182929Z UID:10000188-1760695200-1766257200@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Exposed! DESCRIPTION:Members’ Exhibition\n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith Gallery\, & Up-Front GalleryOctober 17 – December 20\, 2025Opening Reception: Thursday\, October 16\, from 6–8 PM \n\n\n\nOur annual Members Exhibition\, Exposed!\, provides a unique opportunity to showcase the breadth of talent within our local art community. This exhibition offers the public a chance to appreciate the diverse approaches and styles embraced by our members\, reflecting a deep engagement with artistic practice. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/exposed CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Exposed-Featured-Image.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20251003T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20251224T160000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250918T185244Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T183108Z UID:10000187-1759485600-1766592000@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Populated DESCRIPTION:Mark Thibeault\n\n\n\nTopham Brown Memorial GalleryOctober 3 – December 24\, 2025Opening Reception: Thursday\, October 2\, from 6–8 PMArtist Talk:Thursday\, November 27\, at 6 PM \n\n\n\n\n \n Exhibition Publication \n\n\n\nPopulated by northern B.C.–based artist Mark Thibeault features large-scale abstract paintings exploring the shifting connections between people and the natural world. Initiated during the pandemic and continuing today\, the series embraces intuition and improvisation\, drawing on the biodiversity of northwest British Columbia. Thibeault’s multidisciplinary practice spans painting\, music\, and lutherie\, with his work reflecting both the fragility of ecosystems and our shared responsibility to them. \n\n\n\n\nThe Quickening\n\n\n\nWe Were Not Alone In The Garden\n\n\n\nBacchus URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/mark-thibeault-populated CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/We-Were-Not-Al-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250725T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20251008T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250627T220207Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T183220Z UID:10000181-1753437600-1759942800@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Through Our Eyes DESCRIPTION:Teen Junction\n\n\n\nUp-Front GalleryJuly 25 – September 24\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception:Thursday\, July 24\, from 6–8 PM \n\n\n\nThrough Our Eyes is a community-based exhibition created by youth from the Teen Junction Youth Centre in partnership with the Vernon Public Art Gallery. This ongoing project gives voice to the lived experiences of Vernon’s youth\, offering a platform for expression\, representation\, and connection through the arts. Teen Junction provides a safe\, supportive after-school space for youth to connect\, learn\, and access resources when needed. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nImage Description: Chloe Zimmerman\, Untitled\, lino-prints\, 2025. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/teen-junction-through-our-eyes LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Print-Chloe-Zimmerman-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250725T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20251008T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250627T212557Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T183413Z UID:10000179-1753437600-1759942800@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Soft Architectures DESCRIPTION:Sylvan Hamburger\n\n\n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith GalleryJuly 25 – October 8\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, July 24\, from 6–8 PM \n\n\n\n\n \n Exhibition Publication \n\n\n\nIn Soft Architectures\, Vancouver-based artist Sylvan Hamburger transforms everyday materials—bedsheets\, plywood\, floral fabrics—into large-scale installations that reflect on the changing face of our cities. Using printmaking\, sculpture\, and found objects\, Hamburger captures the textures of demolished homes and disappearing buildings\, turning them into poetic imprints of memory\, loss\, and resilience. \n\n\n\nHis prints don’t just depict buildings—they are made from them. By pressing fabrics against salvaged wood and walls\, Hamburger gathers physical traces of the spaces we live in\, and the ones we’ve lost. These haunting\, delicate works explore how the surfaces around us—like the grain of old floorboards or the floral pattern of a bedsheet—can hold personal and collective histories. \n\n\n\nSoft Architectures brings together work from the past five years\, documenting not only physical spaces\, but the emotional and cultural imprints they leave behind. At a time of intense change in our communities\, Hamburger’s work offers a thoughtful reminder to look closely at the surfaces around us\, noticing the textures and traces that are often erased in the rush of redevelopment. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nImage Description: Sylvan Hamburger\, Open House Press (detail)\, 2020\, relief print on bedsheet\, wooden dowels\, shiplap boards. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/sylvan-hamburger-soft-architectures LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Open-house-install08-scaled-e1751059525101.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250725T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250924T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250627T214447Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T183408Z UID:10000180-1753437600-1758733200@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:HOT OFF THE PRESS DESCRIPTION:UBCO Printmaking\n\n\n\nCommunity GalleryJuly 25 – September 24\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, July 24\, from 6–8 PM \n\n\n\nHOT OFF THE PRESS showcases a diverse selection of new work created by students in the printmaking program at UBC Okanagan. Ranging from traditional techniques such as intaglio and relief printing to experimental\, mixed-media approaches\, the exhibition offers a vibrant cross-section of contemporary student print practices. \n\n\n\nSelected with the guidance of UBCO professor Briar Craig and sessional lecturer Dr. Darian Goldin Stahl—who also led the courses from which these works emerged—the exhibition reflects the rigour\, play\, and conceptual inquiry fostered in the studio. With students at different stages in their academic and artistic journeys\, the exhibition highlights both those just beginning to explore the fundamentals of printmaking and those using the medium to push the boundaries of process and form. \n\n\n\nTogether\, these prints speak to the evolving possibilities of printmaking as both a technical and expressive medium. HOT OFF THE PRESS celebrates the creative voices of a new generation of artists\, offering insight into the thoughtful\, hands-on\, and critically engaged work being produced in UBCO’s dynamic printmaking studios. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/ubco-printmaking-hot-off-the-press LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/IMG_9729-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250725T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250924T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250627T202845Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T174736Z UID:10000178-1753437600-1758733200@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Leaving Home DESCRIPTION:Rhonda Neufeld\n\n\n\nTopham Brown Memorial GalleryJuly 25 to September 24\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: July 24 from 6-8 PMArtist Demo: September 5 from 1-3 PM (part of First Friday’s Art Trail)Artist Talk: September 11 from 6-7 PM \n\n\n\n\n \n Exhibition Publication \n\n\n\nIn Leaving Home\, artist Rhonda Neufeld shares a deeply personal body of work that reflects on her connection to the landscape she called home for over 40 years. Through walking\, touching\, and closely observing the natural world around her\, Neufeld captures the details of place—tree bark\, stone surfaces\, shifting light—and translates them into prints that hold both memory and presence. \n\n\n\nUsing traditional printmaking techniques\, Neufeld makes rubbings directly from trees and rocks\, transferring those impressions onto copper plates\, wood blocks\, and lithographic stones. The result is a series of works that feel both grounded and poetic\, inviting viewers to slow down and experience the land in a more intimate way. \n\n\n\nThis exhibition is a quiet celebration of place\, a reflection on the joy of being close to nature\, and a way of saying goodbye to a landscape that shaped a lifetime of artmaking. \n\n\n\nPhotography: Digital Perfections \n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n Current Exhibitions\n \n \n \n \n any\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n June 25\, 2026 \n \n MEA Auction Preview\n \n The full 2026 collection of artworks generously donated by local… \n \n Read More\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n May 29\, 2026 \n \n Through Our Eyes\n \n Teen Junction \n \n Read More\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n May 29\, 2026 \n \n Emergence\n \n Select graduating students from the University of British Columbia Okanagan’s… \n \n Read More\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n May 29\, 2026 \n \n Fireline Kinship\n \n Taylor Baptiste \n \n Read More URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/rhonda-neufeld-leaving-home CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/01.-R.-Neufeld-Shrine-hi-res-3-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250626T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250715T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250516T195834Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T183455Z UID:10000169-1750932000-1752598800@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Auction Preview DESCRIPTION:Midsummer’s Eve of the Arts\n\n\n\nCommunity GalleryJune 26 – July 15\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, July 3\, from 6–8 PM \n\n\n\nThe MEA Auction Preview offers a first look at the full collection of artworks generously donated by local and regional artists in support of the Vernon Public Art Gallery’s annual MEA fundraising auction. \n\n\n\nInstalled in the gallery throughout the month leading up to the event\, this exhibition invites visitors to experience the artworks in person\, explore a wide range of creative practices\, and learn more about the participating artists. Whether you’re a seasoned collector or a first-time bidder\, the preview provides the perfect opportunity to plan your bids in advance and support the arts in your community. \n\n\n\nDon’t miss this chance to discover new artists\, connect with the gallery\, and help ensure the continued success of one of VPAG’s most important fundraising events of the year! URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/midsummers-eve-of-the-arts-auction-preview-2 LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/IMG_9762.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Vernon Public Art Gallery":MAILTO:marketing@vernonpublicartgallery.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250523T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250712T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250502T202210Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T184758Z UID:10000165-1747994400-1752339600@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Smoky Summers DESCRIPTION:Nicola Tibbetts\n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith GalleryMay 23 – July 12\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, May 22\, from 6-8 PM \n\n\n\n\n \n Exhibition Publication \n\n\n\nIn Nicola Tibbetts’ Smoky Summers\, the landscapes we think we know are rendered through the soft veil of smoke – a filter that is no longer temporary\, but emblematic of a broader ecological shift. These quiet\, expansive oil paintings speak to the visceral and visual impact of climate change on the West Coast of Canada. They are not overtly didactic or alarmist; rather\, they are quietly devastating in their familiarity. The scenes Tibbetts depicts – recreational lakes\, basketball courts\, mountain ranges – are recognizable to many who live in British Columbia. But beneath their calm surfaces lies a shared\, unsettling truth: summer is not what it used to be. \n\n\n\nThe title of the exhibition\, Smoky Summers\, evokes both nostalgia and disruption. Where summer once meant blue skies\, carefree days\, and a reliable rhythm of warmth and recreation\, it now increasingly signals evacuation alerts\, smoke advisories\, and the dread of escalating wildfire conditions. In her artist statement\, Tibbetts reflects on the changing character of summer: “Wildfires\, a new summer reality\, and the smoke that envelops the landscape in inescapable.” The work emerges from lived experience – both personal and collective – offering a visual archive of summers marked by crisis yet tinged with beauty and resilience. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nImage Description: Nicola Tibbetts\, Airplane with Pink\, 2024\, Oil on Panel URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/nicola-tibbetts-smokey-summers LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, British Columbia\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/08-Birkenhead-Pink-Smoke-Plane.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250523T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250712T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250502T201606Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T184737Z UID:10000164-1747994400-1752339600@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Emergence DESCRIPTION:Amy Bugera\, Brenna Lam Kennedy\, Ella Cottier\, Faith Bye\, Fredrik Thacker\, & Kate Nicholson\n\n\n\nTopham Brown Memorial GalleryMay 23 – July 12\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, May 22\, from 6-8 PM \n\n\n\n\n \n Exhibition Publication \n\n\n\nEmergence is an annual group exhibition showcasing the work of graduating students from the University of British Columbia Okanagan’s Bachelor of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Media Studies programs. This year’s exhibition features six emerging artists working across painting\, photography\, sculpture\, installation\, assemblage\, and digital media. \n\n\n\nEach artist draws from personal experience\, critical theory\, or cultural observation to create work that engages with pressing contemporary themes. From interrogations of consumerism and environmental degradation to explorations of memory\, grief\, sexuality\, and identity; Emergence presents a deeply considered and diverse body of work. These practices traverse the boundaries between tradition and experimentation—some manipulating family archives and found materials\, others working with digital manipulation or painterly abstraction. \n\n\n\nSince 2009\, the Vernon Public Art Gallery has proudly supported the final exhibitions of BFA/BMS graduates from UBC Okanagan. This annual showcase continues to serve as a platform for emerging artists to present ambitious work to new audiences and step into the next phase of their creative journeys. Emergence invites viewers into intimate\, challenging\, and thoughtful visual worlds shaped by a generation of artists who are attuned to the complexities of the present moment. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAmy BugeraAmy Bugera critiques the spectacle of consumer culture through print-based installation. Drawing influence from Guy Debord’s theories on media\, advertising\, and capitalist disillusionment\, Bugera examines the ways in which platforms like Amazon mediate our experiences through reductive\, persuasive design. Her work manipulates familiar digital commands such as “Add to cart” or “Buy now\,” transforming them through encaustic print processes to highlight their absurdity and ubiquity. By repeating and distorting these icons\, Bugera reveals how advertising functions as a tool of disconnection—encouraging consumption while suppressing reflection. Her practice is both satirical and sincere\, inviting viewers to pause and reconsider the systems we navigate daily. \n\n\n\nBrenna Lam KennedyBrenna Lam Kennedy is a multimedia artist and photographer whose work reflects on intimacy\, time\, and digital mediation. In her photographic series Proximity\, Kennedy captures tender moments between subjects\, where these images exist outside linear time\, imbued with warmth and a quiet sense of longing. Subtle digital interventions and filmic colour grading collapse the distance between viewer and subject\, heightening the emotional resonance of touch and gesture. Kennedy’s interest in the temporality of relationships is central to her practice: how we mark moments of closeness\, how we remember them\, and how digital technologies alter our perception of time itself. \n\n\n\nElla CottierElla Cottier’s sculptural installation Cans investigates the ecological\, archaeological\, and philosophical implications of what we leave behind. Working with slip-cast ceramic forms derived from discarded aluminum cans\, Cottier explores the tension between the “natural” and “unnatural” in the Anthropocene. Her practice considers trash as artifact\, reframing the overlooked or unwanted as future remnants of our current civilization. While the work is rooted in environmental concern\, it also evokes a meditative sensibility—drawing attention to our embeddedness in ecological systems. By casting everyday waste in fragile ceramic\, Cottier prompts viewers to reflect on legacy\, permanence\, and the quiet material traces of human activity. \n\n\n\nFaith ByeFaith Bye’s mixed-media paintings explore the emotional weight of everyday objects through acts of memorialization. Created in the aftermath of her grandmother’s sudden passing\, Bye’s assemblages incorporate inherited domestic items—band-aids\, sheets\, household ephemera—embedded into sculptural grounds of modeling paste\, gesso\, and acrylic medium. These physical materials are then overlaid with painted still-life scenes\, allowing the boundary between the real and the represented to blur. Her work speaks to the quiet rituals of grief and remembrance\, and how material things—once ordinary—become saturated with memory. Through painterly layering\, Bye constructs intimate dialogues between loss\, family\, and the texture of daily life. \n\n\n\nFredrik ThackerFredrik Thacker’s expressive paintings are visceral interrogations of queer desire\, sexual consumption\, and the politics of visibility. Drawing on pornography as both subject and conceptual framework\, Thacker collapses bodies into abstracted forms that pulse with intensity and urgency. Influenced by theorists like Linda Williams\, his work probes the ways pornographic images are consumed\, fragmented\, and fetishized—particularly in relation to queer and trans identity. Through rapid paint application\, mixed media layering\, and disrupted figuration\, Thacker recreates a “frenzy of the visible\,” evoking what he describes as visual “regurgitation” of desire and disgust. His paintings simultaneously seduce and resist\, offering no stable ground for interpretation. \n\n\n\nKate NicholsonKate Nicholson’s paintings reflect on the instability of memory\, the complexities of growing up\, and the disorientation of nostalgia. Using family photographs as source material\, Nicholson reinterprets childhood scenes through a mix of figuration and gestural abstraction. Her works disrupt the original images with energetic markings and overlays\, creating a sense of interference—like a corrupted digital file or fleeting mental image. The result is a visual language that is both deeply personal and broadly relatable\, capturing the tension between sentimentality and unease. Nicholson’s practice sits at the intersection of memory and media\, probing how we reconstruct the past and contend with its emotional residues. \n\n\n\nIn Conclusion \n\n\n\nTogether\, the works in this years Emergence exhibition reflect a generation of artists attuned to the social\, environmental\, and emotional contours of contemporary life. With practices grounded in research\, lived experience\, and material experimentation\, these artists offer not only a snapshot of where they are now\, but a glimpse of where they are headed. The Vernon Public Art Gallery is proud to support these emerging voices at a pivotal moment in their creative evolution\, and we look forward to seeing how their practices continue to develop and resonate beyond this exhibition. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nImage Description: Brenna Lam Kennedy URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/ubco-emergence CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ProximityRight.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250522T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250613T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250502T202447Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T183608Z UID:10000166-1747908000-1749834000@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Gathered DESCRIPTION:SD#22 Indigenous Students\n\n\n\nCommunity GalleryMay 22 – June 20\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Saturday\, May 24\, from 1–4 PM \n\n\n\nGathered celebrates the creativity\, cultural knowledge\, and artistic expression of Indigenous students from across School District No. 22. Showcasing work by students from elementary through high school\, this exhibition highlights a wide range of media. \n\n\n\nThe exhibition reflects both traditional knowledge and contemporary influences\, with many students drawing from their cultural heritage while engaging with present-day themes and personal experiences. The result is a vibrant and diverse collection that speaks to identity\, community\, and the evolving nature of Indigenous art. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nImage Description: Juliet Logan\, gr. 5\, Baeirsto URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/gathered-sd22-indigenous-students LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, British Columbia\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Gathered-Image-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250417T180000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250514T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20251121T193108Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T184123Z UID:10000213-1744912800-1747242000@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Art & Soul DESCRIPTION:SD#22 High School Students\n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith Gallery\, Up-Front Gallery\, and Community GalleryApril 17 – May 14\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, April 17\, from 6–8 PM \n\n\n\nThis exhibition offers a sophisticated look at how emerging artists navigate their world through visual media. Featuring a diverse range of mediums\, from traditional painting and drawing to modern digital works and sculpture\, Art & Soul fills the gallery with the energy of a new generation. These works reflect not only technical growth but also the deep personal expression and critical thinking developed in the secondary art classroom. \n\n\n\nWe invite families\, teachers\, and the community to join us in celebrating these talented students. This exhibition is a testament to the power of arts education in our schools and its role in helping young people find their voice. \n\n\n\nThe Vernon Public Art Gallery extends its deepest gratitude to the dedicated art educators across School District No. 22. Their unwavering commitment to nurturing creativity and technical skill makes this exhibition possible each year\, fostering the next generation of artists and community leaders. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/art-and-soul-2 CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/IMG_5816-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250315T110000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250410T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250303T220924Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T184223Z UID:10000144-1742036400-1744304400@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Art from the Heart DESCRIPTION:SD#22 Elementary Students\n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith Gallery\, Up-Front Gallery\, and Community GalleryMarch 15 – April 10\, 2025 \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Saturday\, March 15\, from 1–4 PM \n\n\n\nThe Vernon Public Art Gallery is delighted to welcome back Art from the Heart\, our annual exhibition showcasing the creativity and imagination of elementary students from School District No. 22. This community favourite celebrates the joy\, curiosity\, and honesty found in children’s art\, offering a vibrant snapshot of how young learners see and interpret the world around them. \n\n\n\nFeaturing a wide range of mediums and subjects\, Art from the Heart fills the gallery with colour\, energy\, and excitement. We invite families\, teachers\, and community members to join us in supporting these emerging young artists and celebrating the value of arts education in our schools. \n\n\n\nThe Vernon Public Art Gallery extends its deepest gratitude to the dedicated art educators across School District No. 22. Their unwavering commitment to nurturing creativity in the classroom makes this exhibition possible each year and plays a vital role in fostering the next generation of artists and community leaders. \n\n\n\nCaleb T: Heart\, mixed media collage\, Hillview Elementary\, Gr. 3 URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/art-from-the-heart-2 LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, British Columbia\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/IMG_1783.pdf-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250314T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250513T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20250221T213948Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T184343Z UID:10000141-1741946400-1747155600@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Wild Times DESCRIPTION:Isabelle Hayeur\n\n\n\nTopham Brown Memorial GalleryMarch 14 – May 13\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, May 13\, from 6–8 PM \n\n\n\n\n \n Exhibition Publication \n\n\n\nMajor bodies of works in Hayeur’s studio practice are focused on environmental changes caused by human development or natural causes. Her photographs document the destruction of natural habitats and whole ecosystems. The exhibition titled Wild Times presented at the Vernon Public Art Gallery consist of photographs of landscapes affected by forest fires in Quebec and British Columbia in the 2020 and 2021 summer seasons. The photographs from sites near Las Saint-Jean depict the after effects of the wildfire which changed the ecosystems in the largest forest fire in the province’s history. The images captured in 2021 show the active fires in British Columbia. The oppressive plumes of raising smoke changed the appearance of the landscape and the thick smoke was hardly penetrated by the sun’s rays. The toxic smoke drifted through large areas and the images captured from satellite views exemplified the apocalyptic scale of the burning infernos. \n\n\n\nHayeur’s focus on environmental changes is also a critique of environmental stewardship and management of the forests. Western Canada and the United States have been affected by the climate change and\, specifically\, prolonged droughts contribute negatively to the fragile ecosystems. In her statement she points out that forest companies harvest timber from ecologically diverse ecosystems\, but replant logged areas with monocrop species which inevitably do not contribute to the ecological diversity of healthy forests. She also questions the continuous suppression of forest fires which results in the excessive fuel load on the forest floor. Her works advocate indirectly for prescribed burning\, a practice which reintroduces fire as natural part of a healthy ecosystem. Hayeur’s exhibition Wild Times contains images of cataclysmic active fires and resulting destruction of natural environments. The images of burnt forests invoke the feeling of existential angst which serve as powerful memento mori for all humanity to contemplate. \n\n\n\nIsabelle Hayeur\, Pyrocumulonimbus\, 2021\, inkjet on photo paper mounted on aluminum panel\, 42″ x 41″ / 107 cm x 104 cm URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/isabelle-hayeur-wild-times LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, British Columbia\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Cumulonimbus_Flammagenitus-Copy.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250110T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250305T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20241219T234944Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T184450Z UID:10000137-1736503200-1741194000@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Home on Syilx Territory DESCRIPTION:Vernon & District Immigrant & Community Services Society Project\n\n\n\nCommunity GalleryJanuary 10 – March 5\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, January 9\, from 6-8 PM \n\n\n\nThe focus of the project was to introduce recent newcomers to visitor protocols of engagement with local Syilx First Nation people’s culture and the land itself. The four-day series of workshops were focused on Land Acknowledgement\, Allyship\, traditional Tule mat making and the cultural importance of marshlands. In the final session the participants created a series of collages which will be on display at the gallery. The intent of the final workshop was aimed towards appreciation of culture and building relationship through art. The workshops were led by Syilx Nation members Mariel Belanger and her daughter Sienna. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nMariel Belanger: Mother Earth\, 2024\, collage on canvas\, 20 x 20 inches URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/vernon-district-immigrant-community-services-society-project-home-on-syilx-territory LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Mariel-Belanger.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Vernon Public Art Gallery":MAILTO:marketing@vernonpublicartgallery.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250110T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250305T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20241219T221807Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T184517Z UID:10000136-1736503200-1741194000@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Once for a While DESCRIPTION:Chrystal Phan\n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith Gallery\, & Up-Front GalleryJanuary 10 – March 5\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, January 9\, from 6-8 PM \n\n\n\nChrystal Phan is a representational artist who integrates the Vietnamese-Canadian experience into narrative oil paintings to challenge the ways in which we imagine Canadian identity\, drawing particular attention to how the reification of racial stereotypes in art and media can actually reinforce social divisions that prevent racialized people from ever feeling “Canadian”. Using personal narratives Phan’s work collapses the boundary between public and private so that viewers can connect their own lives and experiences to the paintings at an intimate level. \n\n\n\nOnce for A While is a series of oil paintings that explore a Vietnamese family’s awkward attempts at integrating into Canadian life. Using examples from Phan’s own childhood and those of her friends\, Phan’s intention is to capture humorous moments where cultural values have clashed. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nChrystal Phan: Turkey Dinner\, 2021\, oil on canvas\, 48 x 60 in URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/chrystal-phan-once-for-a-while LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Chrystal-Phan-Turkey-Dinner-2-scaled.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Vernon Public Art Gallery":MAILTO:marketing@vernonpublicartgallery.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250110T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250305T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20241219T220414Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T184533Z UID:10000135-1736503200-1741194000@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Pictograph Roots DESCRIPTION:David Wilson Sookinakin\n\n\n\nTopham Brown Memorial GalleryJanuary 10 – March 5\, 2025 \n\n\n\nOpening Reception: Thursday\, January 9\, from 6-8 PM \n\n\n\nOver the years\, David Wilson Sookinakin has developed a signature style of paintings based on the traditional pictographs found on numerous locations throughout Syilx Nation Territory. He uses pictorial elements which often illustrate some of the stories and narratives passed down through oral tradition and storytelling. In addition to the traditional narratives\, Wilson creates narratives which he invents to highlight the context of post-contact experiences of First Nations peoples. Nevertheless\, Wilson’s artforms have been evolving over several decades of his prolific artistic career. \n\n\n\n“My art is ever evolving and is a true representation of my identity as an Interior Salish person.  It is natural evolution of pictographs from their ancient form to a contemporary interpretation using form lines unique to First Nations art.  I am a storyteller through art and words and my message to the Interior Salish people and the world is that we Interior Salish have at least one beautiful and vibrant First Nations art form totally unique and must be shared with the world.” \n\n\n\nDavid Wilson Sookinakin \n\n\n\nDavid Wilson Sookinakin: White Birch Creek – Fish Chief2024\, acrylic on canvas\, 66 x 66 in URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/david-wilson-sookinakin-pictograph-roots LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, British Columbia\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2025,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/David-Wilson-White-birch-creek-fish-chief-low-res.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20241017T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20241220T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20240813T212758Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251127T010532Z UID:10000129-1729159200-1734714000@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Exposed! DESCRIPTION:Members’ Exhibition\n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith Gallery & Up-Front GalleryOctober 17 – December 20\, 2024 \n\n\n\nThis group exhibition of artwork produced by the Vernon Public Art Gallery’s members give the public a view of a variety of different media used to create works of art in various artistic genres ranging from abstract art to landscapes\, still lives\, and portraiture. \n\n\n\nLake Louise\, Serena Arsenault URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/exposed-members-2024 LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, British Columbia\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2024,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Serena-Arsenault-Lake-Louise-.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20241003T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20241220T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20240813T224235Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251126T232051Z UID:10000130-1727949600-1734714000@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Rewilding: The Forest Will Forget Us DESCRIPTION:Lyndal Osborne\, John Freeman\, Liz Ingram\, Bernd Hildebrandt\n\n\n\nTopham Brown Memorial GalleryOctober 3 – December 20\, 2024 \n\n\n\nThe exhibition Rewilding: The Forest Will Forget Us\, created by Lyndal Osborne and John Freeman\, and Liz Ingram and Bernd Hildebrandt\, is an exhibit about the resilience of nature as witnessed in land sited on a boreal forest lake in Alberta. In the process they acknowledge the many other stories that go back millennia\, and which have been shaped by people living and surviving on the land. These legends and beliefs are now re-emerging from oral histories of the original peoples of these lands and help us to shape our common existence within nature. \n\n\n\nPhotography: Digital Perfections URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/rewilding-the-forest-will-forget-us CATEGORIES:2024,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/241010-1570-low-res.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20241003T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20241218T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20241113T001732Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251126T233200Z UID:10000133-1727949600-1734541200@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:FROM THE VAULT DESCRIPTION:Featuring: Sophie Atkinson\, Allan Brooks\, Joe Plaskett\, Paul Jones\, Holly Middleton\n\n\n\nCommunity GalleryOctober 3 – December 18\, 2024 \n\n\n\nThe Vernon Public Art Gallery (VPAG) is pleased to present From the Vault\, an exhibition highlighting select works from its permanent collection\, on display from October 3 to December 18\, 2024. This showcase offers the public a rare opportunity to view pieces by influential artists with ties to the region\, including Allan Brooks\, Sophie Atkinson\, Janet Holly Middleton\, and Paul Jones\, with additional works by renowned BC artist Joe Plaskett. \n\n\n\nVPAG’s permanent collection consists of over 670 artworks by 154 artists. The earliest piece dates to 1909\, while the latest acquisitions were made as recently as 2022. Each piece contributes to the story of the region’s artistic heritage and evolution. \n\n\n\nFeatured artist Allan Brooks (1869–1946)\, known worldwide as a naturalist and illustrator\, made significant contributions to North American wildlife studies\, especially of Canadian bird species. Brooks\, honored by Canadian Heritage in 2000 as a person of Canadian Historical Importance\, devoted his career to capturing the unique fauna of British Columbia and beyond. \n\n\n\nTrailblazing artist Sophie Atkinson (1876–1972) was among the first women to document the Okanagan landscape in her work. After WWI\, she traveled internationally before settling in Canada\, where she painted commissioned works for the Canadian Pacific Railway. Her art captured the rugged beauty of Western Canada\, establishing a legacy that would inspire future generations. \n\n\n\nJanet Holly Middleton (1922–2018) combined her artistic talent with a passion for education. Her career included teaching positions at the University of Alberta\, Banff School of Fine Arts\, and University of Guelph\, where she influenced countless Canadian artists. Known for her adventurous spirit\, Middleton drew inspiration from her travels\, producing works with scenes from across the globe. \n\n\n\nJoe Plaskett (1918–2014) brought his artistic vision to an international stage\, with works held in collections from Prince Edward Island to Vancouver Island\, including the National Gallery of Canada. Plaskett’s talent was recognized early on by Lawren Harris\, and he was awarded the first Emily Carr Scholarship in 1946. This opportunity took him from San Francisco to New York\, and eventually to Paris\, where he created some of his most celebrated pieces. \n\n\n\nThe exhibition also includes pieces by Paul Jones (1921–2018)\, a Vernon-based artist and writer who served on the VPAG board in the 1990s. Jones’s work integrates sand and acrylic resin to evoke the landscapes of his youth near the Pembina River\, creating textured pieces that speak to both personal memory and place. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n \n \n Sophie Atkinson\, Oyama\, 1948\, watercolour on paper\, 8 x 12 in\n\n\n\n\n \n \n \n Paul Jones\, Big Coulee\, 1970\, acrylic and sand on canvas\, 32 x 52 in\n\n\n\n\n \n \n \n Allan Brooks\, Grosbeak/Waxwing\, 1944\, watercolour on paper\, 7 x 10 in\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n \n \n Janet Holly Middleton\, Untitled (Kalamalka Lake)\, 1976\, oil on canvas\, 23 x 43 in\n\n\n\n\n \n \n \n Joe Plaskett\, Untitled (Fraser River)\, 1971\, chalk pastel on canvas\, 18 x 24 in URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/from-the-vault-permanent CATEGORIES:2024,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Joe-Plasket.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240725T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240917T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20240624T231439Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251126T233158Z UID:10000123-1721901600-1726592400@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Inside Out DESCRIPTION:Lana Schuster\n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith Gallery & Up-Front GalleryJuly 25 – September 17\, 2024 \n\n\n\nArtist statement: \n\n\n\nI am interested in so many things about painting. The paint for one. I love to scoop it up\, squeeze it out\, and mix it around\, watch the colours develop\, spread it around\, see what happens\, how the colours and forms look against each other. The brushes for another. I have my favourites. Mostly the ones that hold a lot of paint. The ‘Why paint?’ Because I am compelled to\, I can’t not. The ‘How to paint?’ Now it’s getting really interesting. Because this is what it’s really all about. I try to stay open to new ideas\, to the suggestions of my voice inside\, my outside voice. It is all about trusting the process and being willing to paint authentically\, to be part of something new. \n\n\n\nThe beginnings of my process may start with observing what’s around me. Or it could be a response with something going on internally that I may or may not be aware of. That can be as dramatic as the experience of losing a loved one or simply just wanting to spread some paint around. I’m often moved to paint after I’ve spent time outdoors. Sometimes I start with a plan for a landscape or a concrete image and then I get lost in the paint and process and something completely non-objective emerges. My intuition takes over\, if I let it\, if I trust it\, if I allow myself. \n\n\n\nCreating these works surprise me every time. What you see in them is an expression of an experience\, a record of an experience in time\, something in the past that has passed but truly lives on in the painting. What you see in them is  what you see in them – what is evoked or personally meaningful for you. I hope  that in looking at them\, you will feel something\, see something\, perhaps even experience something that resonates with you. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/inside-out-lana-schuster LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, British Columbia\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2024,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Stirrings.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Vernon Public Art Gallery":MAILTO:marketing@vernonpublicartgallery.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240725T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240917T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20240624T230744Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251127T010659Z UID:10000122-1721901600-1726592400@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Descent into Classicism DESCRIPTION:Glenn Clark\n\n\n\nTopham Brown Memorial GalleryJuly 25 – September 17\, 2024 \n\n\n\nArtist statement: \n\n\n\nWhen I was young\, I dreamed and schemed of creating neo-classical paintings.  There are a lot of ducks one must put in a row before mural size classical themed paintings can develop.  Fifteen years ago\, I took a couple years off my regular practice to build a studio and that opened the gate of possibilities. \n\n\n\nI always get there it just takes me longer.  Beyond the space and gumption\, an artist needs the reason\, finances\, imagery\, time\, ambition and lots of practice to create this type of work.  After visiting the Louvre in 2016 there was a jolt\, my paintings would look to the past for guidance. It finally all came together and I suspect this descent is turning into something more akin to a spiral.   \n\n\n\nIt always seemed to me that classical artists from previous centuries had better props to work with; horses\, armor\, castles and archaic ruins. I needed new models to push ahead and a photo shoot at a jousting event in Osoyoos was perfect to get started. \n\n\n\nWhat drives an artist; is it the fear of death? The love for life and art are interconnected. When you look at centuries old work you sense a window into the past\, a connection\, a message or warning through this time hole called a painting. You see how things were\, the humor\, mood\, fashion\, cruelty of the time. It’s like the artists were reaching out through a one-way portal to the future\, never wanting to let go\, hanging on through their art.  \n\n\n\nTiming is everything and it’s a good time for artists to take cues from the eighteenth century and beyond when art famously rebelled against the status quo.  People are consistent\, history repeats.  Neo-classicism\, the art of the time of the French Revolution\, arguably the most important chapter in the history of modern civilization; the perfect art for a time of upheaval. All these influences; art history\, my own history\, and the current events that are making history.  You throw that in a studio with yours truly and this is what shakes out. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/descent-into-classicism-glenn-clark LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, British Columbia\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2024,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/boarding-pass.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Vernon Public Art Gallery":MAILTO:marketing@vernonpublicartgallery.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240627T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240715T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20240422T185438Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251126T233516Z UID:10000112-1719482400-1721062800@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Midsummer's Eve of the Arts Auction Preview DESCRIPTION:Community GalleryJuly 25 – September 17\, 2024 \n\n\n\nPreview the spectacular pieces available at the Midsummer’s Eve of the Arts Auction Preview exhibition from June 26th to July 16th\, 2024. \n\n\n\nJoin us on June 26th for the Opening Reception of the Midsummer’s Eve of the Arts auction preview. \n\n\n\nPrevious Auction items\, and previous Midsummer’s Eve of the Arts previews: URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/midsummers-eve-of-the-arts-auction-preview LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2024,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/MG_0265-scaled.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Vernon Public Art Gallery":MAILTO:marketing@vernonpublicartgallery.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240523T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240717T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20240422T181713Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251126T233858Z UID:10000110-1716458400-1721235600@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Accidentals DESCRIPTION:Robert Fee\n\n\n\nCaroline Galbraith GalleryMay 23 – July 17\, 2024 \n\n\n\nArtist statement: \n\n\n\nThe title of the show “Accidentals” refers to the musical term indicating a temporary shift in a musical composition. Once the key of a song is established\, an instrumentalist reading the music will encounter a note has been made sharp or flat for that bar and they must adjust. Then the music will default back to the original key for the subsequent bars\, until the composer creates another shift somewhere else. At first this temporary change may be a mystery to the individual player\, but to the composer there is underlying meaning; a change in the harmony\, or a different scale with a particular sound. What might have seemed a random change always has a purposeful intention. The accidental always adds more tension\, drama\, and interest to the piece. \n\n\n\nWith these paintings\, I gather structures randomly\, as you would with a collage\, and I start creating parameters and set a course for the work. At first\, the paintings seem to be about something unintended; mostly from imagery I gravitate towards but not knowing where it will fit into the work. Some of the strangest references that I choose do seem like random accidentals; not knowing how they will relate to the whole. Often\, I’ll find a phrase or image that materializes out of simple curiosity. \n\n\n\nI engage with the visual challenge\, integrating and editing the accidental imagery into the painting. A quiet interaction takes place between the images\, their potential subtext and my brushwork and colour palette. The compositions involve a process that channels energy around and throughout. The process of additions and revisions repeats until ultimately the composition appears resolved. I like discovering beauty or humour that may reveal itself in this process. The paintings involve some free association\, which probably also involves my own psychology\, but I hope these connections have some universal resonance. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/accidentals-robert-fee LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, British Columbia\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2024,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Im-not-antisocial-Im-just-busy-reading-scaled.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Vernon Public Art Gallery":MAILTO:marketing@vernonpublicartgallery.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240523T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240717T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20240422T180920Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251126T234056Z UID:10000109-1716458400-1721235600@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:An Eclectic Collection DESCRIPTION:Crit Club\n\n\n\nUp-Front GalleryMay 23 – July 17\, 2024 \n\n\n\nMembers of the VPAG Crit Club are excited to present An Eclectic Collection\, which will be on view in the Up-Front Gallery space. Crit Club is a workshop and critique program dedicated to supporting high school school students in their artistic pursuits and development. Every month\, the students gather to share their artwork for a group critique session\, and partake in a workshop and presentation by an established guest artist. \n\n\n\nThis collection will feature art pieces that have been workshopped through these sessions\, now on display for the public to enjoy. \n\n\n\nMakayla Callender\, “Home” URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/an-eclectic-collection LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2024,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Makayla-Callender-Home.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Vernon Public Art Gallery":MAILTO:marketing@vernonpublicartgallery.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240523T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240717T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20240422T175448Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251127T001604Z UID:10000107-1716458400-1721235600@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Emergence DESCRIPTION:Audrey Allan\, Sarena Aresenault\, Carman Bouvier\, Taylor Carpenter\, Katja Ewart\, Amy Marui\, Karina Nardi\, Ari Pielecki\, Nick Tai\, & Aliana Voshell\n\n\n\nTopham Brown Memorial GalleryMay 23 – July 17\, 2024 \n\n\n\nThe exhibition Emergence features works of artists who have completed their studies at UBC Okanagan’s BFA program in 2024. This exhibition exemplifies various approaches to research and studio practice and asserts an active hands-on attitude while creating their work. \n\n\n\nPlease join us at the VPAG on May 23\, from 6-8 pm for the opening reception of Emergence. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/emergence LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2024,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Carmen-Bouvier.png ORGANIZER;CN="Vernon Public Art Gallery":MAILTO:marketing@vernonpublicartgallery.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240523T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20240621T170000 DTSTAMP:20260423T135134 CREATED:20240422T180034Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251126T234059Z UID:10000108-1716458400-1718989200@vernonpublicartgallery.com SUMMARY:Through Our Eyes DESCRIPTION:Teen Junction\n\n\n\nCommunity GalleryMay 23 – June 21\, 2024 \n\n\n\nThrough Our Eyes is a unique community-based project by the youth at the Teen Junction Youth Centre in partnership with the Vernon Public Art Gallery. The Vernon Public Art Gallery strives to connect art and the community and supports emerging artists working outside of mainstream of artistic production. The focus of the exhibition is to give voice to youth and make statements about their lives and experiences in Vernon. We all have a unique voice and presence in our community and Through Our Eyes is an affirmation of the importance of recognition\, representation\, collaboration\, and the arts. Teen Junction Youth Centre is an after-school drop-in center that offers a safe space for youth to relax\, connect\, and learn. The Centre works with community organizations to connect youth with support and resources when they need it. URL:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/event/through-our-eyes LOCATION:Vernon Public Art Gallery\, 3228 31st Ave\, Vernon\, British Columbia\, V1T2H3\, Canada CATEGORIES:2024,Exhibitions ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://vernonpublicartgallery.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/B.O-4-1-scaled.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Vernon Public Art Gallery":MAILTO:marketing@vernonpublicartgallery.com END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR