Access is a non-profit organization dedicated to emergent contemporary art practices. Access strives to spark critical conversations about contemporary art through experimentation and risk-taking within the gallery space and beyond.
An artist-run centre established in 1991 and situated in Vancouver’s historic Chinatown, Access Gallery is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting and presenting the work of emergent artists, curators and cultural practitioners, as well as those entering a new experimental phase of their practice. We enable critical conversations and risk taking through new configurations of audience, artists and community. With this mandate, Access occupies a uniquely important position in Vancouver’s cultural landscape. The gallery often provides the occasion for an artist’s first solo exhibition (and have provided important exhibition opportunities for some of Canada's most successful contemporary artists at early stages in their careers). Access orients these artists to a wider dialogue and visibility within the community, while offering that community the opportunity to encounter new artists and artistic approaches through brave and engaging programming.
Access produces a dynamic and ambitious yearly program of exhibitions, publications, our travelling artist residency Twenty-Three Days at Sea (2015-2017), our recently launched initiative for collaborative projects and occupation, PLOT; as well as outreach programs that include local, national and international collaborations, talks, performances, screenings, readings, workshops, walking tours and symposia. Committed to reflecting a broad range of artistic disciplines as well as cultural and socio-political concerns relevant to our contemporary world, our programming is nationally and internationally recognized. Access Gallery compensates artists in accordance with CARFAC guidelines, and is a long-standing member of the Pacific Association of Artist Run Centres (PAARC).
PLOT is a space intended for occupation by collectives, artist initiatives, nascent or small-scale organizations and those conducting itinerant projects who seek space, greater visibility and, most importantly, who desire to cultivate a relationship with a community or public. For more information, please visit our website here: http://accessgallery.ca/plot/
To learn more about our incredibly unique, travelling artist residency, Twenty-Three Days at Sea, please visit the official residency facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/23DaysResidency
Access Gallery acknowledges the generous support of the Canada Council for the Arts, the province of British Columbia through the BC Arts Council and BC Gaming Commission, the City of Vancouver, the Burrard Arts Foundation, the Koerner Foundation, the Audain Foundation for the Visual Arts, as well as our valuable donors, members and volunteers.
With gratitude as guests, Access is located on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
