Official Statement on the Event of November 12, 2022
The Vancouver Art Gallery can confirm that two individuals entered the Gallery and vandalized a work of art in the permanent collection, Emily Carr’s Stumps and Sky, c.1934. Emily Carr is among Canada’s most iconic artists. The Gallery staff are working with the Vancouver Police Department to investigate this act of vandalism.
“The Vancouver Art Gallery condemns acts of vandalism towards the works of cultural significance in our care, or in any museum. A central part of our mission is to make safer spaces for communication and ideas. As a non-profit charity, we are an institution of memory and care for future generations. We do support the free expression of ideas, but not at the expense of suppressing the ideas and artistic expressions of others, or otherwise inhibiting people from access to those ideas.” says Anthony Kiendl, Director and CEO of the Vancouver Art Gallery.
The Gallery staff believes there will be no permanent damage to the artwork. The Gallery condemns this act and works to preserve and protect culturally significant works for all British Columbians and Canadians.
Please note the following statement provided by the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD) issued on November 3rd, 2022:
In response to recent attacks on works of art in art museums, AAMD issued the following statement. pic.twitter.com/27W5hRQ7ic
— Art Museum Directors (@MuseumDirectors) November 3, 2022