Art on Demand | The Reach Art Gallery

Abbotsford, BC – The Reach Gallery Museum is welcoming new season of exhibitions and public programs to Abbotsford this month. The Opening Reception, happening January 27, 6:30-8:30pm, is a public event featuring speakers, light refreshments, and a cash bar. Admission is pay-what-you-can by donation.

This Winter/Spring season, The Reach is hosting over twenty local artists for the 7^th Fraser Valley Biennial, guest curated by Candace Couse. Since its start in 2011, the Biennial has showcased the work of more than 250 local and regional artists. Couse, who recently joined the Department of Visual Art at the University of the Fraser Valley, has set the theme for this year’s Biennial as “the body,” and has encouraged artists to explore this concept as broadly as possible. The resulting exhibition includes work in a variety of media that approach the theme from a range of unique perspectives.

Art on Demand is an exhibition series that brings together emerging artists and curators to showcase the talents of young creatives in our region. The exhibitions are often participants’ first opportunity to display their artwork in a professional public gallery. This season, emerging curator Rachel Kehler has curated two shows with emerging artists Emily Goodbrand (January 27 – March 18, 2023) and Krystal Charlston (March 24 – May 6, 2023).

In image/object, a new exhibition curated by Adrienne Fast, three artists – Karin Bubaš, Natalie Hunter, and Karen Zalamea – each explore the potential for photographic images to be spatial, experiential, and material, but do so in different ways and to different ends. From the earliest days of photography, artists have attempted to push the medium beyond its revolutionary ability to capture realistic two-dimensional imagery and to test its possibilities. In recent years, there have been a number of contemporary artists who have been again attracted to the potential for three-dimensional photography. New artistic practices are now emerging that embrace and revel in the material qualities of photography itself. image/object invites its viewers to experience the possibilities of the photograph beyond its two dimensions.

There is something for everyone at The Reach, from our exhibitions to our permanent Voices of the Valley historical exhibition, as well as workshops and events for all ages. Visit us at thereach.ca to learn more about all we have to offer you and your family.