Polygon Homes Ltd. and the Audain Foundation are donating $4 million to help fund Presentation House Gallery’s plan to build and open a 19,000-square-foot art gallery on North Vancouver’s waterfront in 2017.
Polygon president Neil Chrystal announced what is the largest gift Presentation House has received in its 30-year history at an event November 25. Presentation House has agreed to name the new building the Polygon Gallery.
The City of North Vancouver has already committed $2.5 million toward the project and Presentation House has also attracted about $1 million in private donations.
“This very important gift puts us more than half way to our total fundraising goal for the new building and sets a challenge for others committed to seeing the Polygon Gallery become a reality,” said Presentation House’s capital campaign chairman Stuart McLaughlin.
Both Polygon Homes and its chair, Michael Audain, have long been avid supporters of the arts.
Audain and his wife, Yoshi Karasawa, are spending upwards of $30 million to build the Audain Art Museum in Whistler – a project that will have a gallery dedicated to B.C. artist E.J. Hughes in part because of a major art gift announced last month.
The 38-year-old Presentation House Gallery has had exhibitions through the years that have focused on artists such as Stan Douglas, Rodney Graham, Fred Herzog, Ian Wallace, Ansel Adams, Diane Arbus, Andy Warhol and many others.
Patkau Architects has designed the organization’s future gallery, which is expected to be Metro Vancouver's first new public art gallery of the 21st century.
A gift shop, café and exhibition and education space will help the future gallery be self-sustaining.
