Audain Art Museum

Permanent Collection

The Museum contains a permanent collection of the province’s most celebrated artists. Highlights include hereditary Haida Chief James Hart’s The Dance Screen (The Scream Too), an exceptional collection of historical and contemporary Indigenous masks, the largest permanent display of paintings by Emily Carr, and key examples of the Vancouver photo conceptualism movement.

Two significant works by nationally recognized artists have recently been acquired by the museum. Emily Carr's Survival and Lawren Harris' Mountain Sketch LXXVII (Consolation Lake) are now on display. The collection also includes The Crazy Stair, a painting by Emily Carr which sold at auction for a record-breaking $3.3 million. This price was the highest ever paid for an Emily Carr at auction, the highest for a work by a Canadian female artist and the fourth most expensive work at an art auction in Canada.

Exhibitions

The museum displays up to three temporary exhibitions a year, creating an ever-changing display to delight locals and visitors alike. Including both historical and contemporary art, they produce their own exhibitions and showcase art from leading art institutions around the world to complement their permanent collection.

Current Exhibitions

Tom Thomson: North Star

Date: June 29 – October 14, 2024
Description: Tom Thomson’s catalytic achievement changed the face of Canadian painting forever. He has a canonical place in Canadian culture, and each generation must reckon with his legacy anew, bringing to bear the fresh perspectives of their time. Gathering works from the leading collections of the McMichael Canadian Art Collection and the National Gallery of Canada, as well as other Canadian museums and private collections, this exhibition will provide a fresh view of one of Canada’s most incandescent talents, focusing on the small en plein air oil sketch, of which he is the supreme master. Oil sketches will be organized both by chronology and by theme, paring away the inessential to get at the essence of his vision, and isolating moments of artistic experimentation.

Russna Kaur: Pierced into the air, the temper and secrets crept in with a cry!

Date: October 4, 2024 – January 27, 2025
Description: Kaur approaches painting as a space of infinite possibility, play, and experimentation. This exhibition will unfold in the space as a dynamic series of modular works, where smaller paintings will evolve into large-scale compositions, constantly growing, shrinking, and shifting. The artist complicates the surfaces of her work by incorporating a diverse array of materials, including canvas, wood panel, textiles, acrylic paint, spray paint, oil pastels, handmade paper, and 3D printed elements. A distinctive feature of this exhibition is the adaptive nature of the artworks to their surroundings. The pieces will extend beyond traditional boundaries, breaking through frames to engage with gallery walls, floors, and ceilings.

Upcoming Special Exhibitions

Curve! Women Carvers on the Northwest Coast

Date: November 23, 2024 – May 5, 2025
Description: This exhibition sheds light on a lesser-explored facet of Northwest Coast art—women’s contributions to the rich tradition of carving wood and argillite. Featuring more than 125 works of art including poles, panels, masks, bowls, and other sculptures all intertwined with traditional knowledge, the works are on loan from public and private collections across North America. The exhibition focuses on a selection of carvers active from the 1950s to present, highlighting the pivotal role of women artists within the larger tradition of Indigenous carving along the coast of British Columbia. It seeks to celebrate and elevate the contributions of women in an often traditionally male-dominated field by showcasing the works of influential artists like Ellen Neel and Freda Diesing, alongside the voices of senior, mid-career, and emerging artists.

Admission

Adult: $22
Senior: $19
Young Adult (19 to 25): $15
Youth & Children (18 and under): Free
Members: Free

Tickets for Audain Art Museum can be purchased at www.audainartmuseum.com.

When to Visit

Gift Shop

The Audain Art Museum Shop features a wide selection of handmade jewellery, pottery, wood work and homeware from British Columbia artists, as well as artist prints and collector books from the Audain's permanent collection and temporary exhibits.

Where is the Audain Art Museum?

The Audain Art Museum is located at 4350 Blackcomb Way. Parking is available in the day lots.

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