Audain Art Museum: Whistler’s Art & Culture Hub
If you’re in town and looking to soak up some art and culture, the Audain Art Museum is the place to be.
Located in the Village beside the Whistler Public Library, the Audain Art Museum opened its doors to the public on March 12th, 2016. This 56,000 square-foot building is home to a beautiful Permanent Collection of nearly 200 works of art representing coastal British Columbia culture.
The Museum also hosts an ever-changing display for Whistler locals and visitors with up to 3 temporary exhibitions a year from art institutions around the world. These exhibitions typically run for several months and showcase both historical and contemporary art.
Audain Art Museum: Permanent Collection
The Audain Art Museum has 10 galleries and almost 200 works from 57 different artists in its Permanent Collection. The collection includes The Crazy Stair by Emily Carr, which was bought for a record-breaking $3.3 million at auction. The Crazy Stair is the highest ever paid for an Emily Carr painting at auction as well as the highest for a work of art by a female Canadian artist.
Along with its impressive gathering of Emily Carr works and other notable post-war modernists such as E.J. Hughes, Gordon Smith and Jack Shadbolt, the Museum houses one of the world’s most outstanding collections of Northwest Coast masks from the nineteenth-century.
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The assemblage of Northwest Coast masks includes 39 different First Nations masks created by the Coast Salish, Haisla, Nisga’a, Haida, Tsimshian, Kwakwaka’wakw, Nuxalx, Gitk’san, Tlingit, Heiltsuk, Nuu-chah-nulth, and Nuxalk nations.
Upcoming Events and Programs at the Audain Art Museum
Offering programs and events for all ages, the Audain Art Museum creates signature learning experiences and tours based on art in the Permanent Collection and its temporary exhibitions. These tours are guided by artists, educators, and museum professionals with different events occurring year-round. You can learn what's coming up at the Museum by checking out their event calendar when you’re in town.
Photo Credits: Justa Jeskova
