Artists and residents who have been lobbying for additional exhibition space in 亚洲天堂 Lake will get their wish next month when the Lakes District Museum Society opens the area鈥檚 first public art gallery.
The museum society recently digitized its archives, allowing it to relocate all hard-copy documentary heritage resources to a secure storage area. The project, which took 10 months, freed up an entire room on the museum鈥檚 main floor.
鈥淥riginally, we planned to use the space for additional museum exhibits,鈥� said Russ Skillen, president of the museum society, 鈥渂ut after seeing the area without its bulky furniture, 70 years of bound newspapers, and more than three dozen binders of photographs, we realized it would be the perfect location for a small but intimate art gallery.鈥�
Museum society staff and volunteers gave the room a fresh coat of paint and purchased a state of the art picture hanging system with financial assistance from the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako鈥檚 arts and culture fund. The rail hanging system will allow artists to meet their compositional goals without damaging the room鈥檚 wall surfaces.
鈥淭he gallery project is designed to increase use of the museum while supporting arts and culture in the community,鈥� explained Skillen. 鈥淎rt galleries and museums work well together, and we鈥檙e pleased to bring this synergy to the Lakes District.鈥�
The retrofit will be complete later this month, after which the museum society will issue an open Call for Exhibition Proposals from local and regional artists. Local proposals will be given priority, but the facility will be available to any artist who purchases a $10 membership in the museum society. 鈥淲e think that鈥檚 a small price to pay for getting access to good exhibition space,鈥� noted Skillen.
鈥淭his is an exciting opportunity for artists and society members,鈥� Skillen added. 鈥淚f everything goes according to plan, we鈥檒l open our first exhibition in July.鈥�
The Lakes District Museum Society was established in 1978 to gather, preserve, and exhibit items of educational, historical, and cultural value to the Lakes District. Its museum at 520 Highway 16 contains thousands of relics donated by the area鈥檚 pioneers and their descendants.
