Art Vancouver

Art Vancouver is a contemporary art fair featuring international artwork, panelists, classes and more at the Vancouver Convention Centre in the spring each year.

The Art Vancouver fair takes place from May 4th to 7th in 2023. If you like art, you’ll love this event! It’s impressive! Not only can you admire the art, but you can also buy it!

For tickets and full details about the event, visit the artvancouver.net website.

This article features the following information about Art Vancouver:

International Art Exhibition at the Art Vancouver Fair in 2023

Art Vancouver is one of the largest and most prestigious international art fairs in Western Canada. The event provides a global stage for art galleries and artists to showcase and sell their pieces to thousands of people. Not only is the fair an exceptional place to check out different styles of artwork, but there are also guest speakers, panelists and live demonstrations to enjoy.

At the fair in 2023 an Opus Art Masters painting competition takes place in front of guests. This is when eight different artists use a mystery box of supplies to paint something extraordinary within one hour. Spectators get to vote for the piece that they like the most. There are also Art Classes at Art Vancouver. The instructional workshops happen on site during the show and include admission for one day.

Art Vancouver is organized by the Vancouver Visual Art Foundation which is also responsible for the free Art Downtown Summer Program in Vancouver. It’s a popular event that art lovers from across the world travel to see. As many as 10,000 or more people attend in a typical year.

For tickets and the event’s official website, click Art Vancouver.

Vancouver Convention Centre at Art Vancouver

When and Where

In 2023, Art Vancouver runs from Thursday, May 4th, until Sunday, May 7th. The second day of the event is also Cinco de Mayo.

The Thursday is when the VIP Preview, Opening Night Red Carpet Event, and Face of Art Runway Show happen. It’s also the day that alcoholic beverages are available for purchase.

The rest of the art show is open to the public for three more days, from the Friday to the Sunday. Hours on the Friday are from 1:00 pm to 9:00 pm and hours on the Saturday are from 12:00 pm to 9:00 pm. The show concludes on Sunday. On that day it runs from 11:00 am until 5:00 pm.

Art Vancouver is held in the West Building of the Vancouver Convention Centre. It’s the big modern building at 1055 Canada Place between Canada Place and Jack Poole Plaza.

The venue offers parking but is also transit friendly as it’s close to the Waterfront SkyTrain Station. The beautiful location also offers paths for walking and cycling right along the waterfront. The Coal Harbour Seawall connects to Stanley Park and makes for a wonderful way to take in the views that Vancouver has to offer.

For tickets and the event’s official website, click Art Vancouver.

Admission

Tickets to attend the Art Vancouver fair in 2023 are available both online and at the venue. General admission for one day in 2023 costs $17 online or $20 at the door for everyone ages 13 and above. Children ages 12 and under get in for free.

Multi-day passes are also available for those who want to visit the fair on all three days. The passes cost about $40 in 2023.

Tickets for the special Opening Night Premiere Party cost about $35 this year. The event features a preview of all the art, music and a Face of Art Runway Show. It’s a great event!

For ambitious folks who want to experience all that Art Vancouver has to offer in 2023, VIP Passes include access to early previews, opening night activities and all regular show days. In 2023 they cost about $100 per person.

For tickets and the event’s official website, click Art Vancouver.

Exhibitors at Art Vancouver

Art Vancouver is not exclusively for paintings or drawings. Instead, it’s a contemporary art fair showcasing different forms of art including photography, sculptures and more. Most of what you’ll see are paintings, but there is a lot more too.

Art Vancouver typically features over 100 exhibitors. Some are from Canada, but many are from other parts of the world. In fact, artworks from over 15 countries were featured at the art fair in 2022. There were artists from Spain, Japan, Nigeria and Ireland to name a few. Artists from Iran, Argentina and from all over the United States were also at the event.

TIP: Be sure to chat with the artists. They are more than happy to tell you about their art. You’ll learn some pretty interesting and amazing things from them! So many pieces of art have a story!

To see the full list of artists featuring at the 2023 event click Art Vancouver Exhibitors.

2023 Schedule

Art Vancouver features guest speakers, classes, art demonstrations and performances. Schedules for each day of the 2023 fair are listed below. Exact times and details, however, are subject to change.

Thursday, May 4th

6:30 pm – VIP Preview
7:00 pm – Opening Night
8:00 pm – Face of Art Runway Show

Friday, May 5th

1:00 pm – Doors open
1:00 pm – Art Stories Podcast Series with Jael Roznicki
1:30 pm – Art Stories Podcast Series with Adriana Cisneros
2:30 pm – Art Stories Podcast Series with Kire
3:00 pm – Art Stories Podcast Series with Tracey-Mae Chambers
5:05 pm – Art demonstrations with Joseph Muchina Mwangi and Padmashree Nuggehalli
6:15 pm – Live art by Taisha Teal and Sky Lilah
7:30 pm – Live art by Lisa Wolfin and Kathy van Gogh
9:00 pm – Doors close

Saturday, May 6th

12:00 pm – Doors open
12:15 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Vladimir Kolosov
12:15 pm – Pretty in Pink class with Lauren Morris
12:30 pm – Geometric Galore class with Sky Lilah
12:35 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Taylor Trbo Donohue
12:55 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Iva Staykova
1:15 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Sascha Westendorp
1:35 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Mackenzie Perras
1:55 pm –15 Minutes of Fame with Isabelle Frot
2:00 pm – Poured Paint Portrait class with Kathy van Gogh
2:15 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Eunice Wu
2:35 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Kire
2:45 pm – Paint Springtime in Bloom class with Lisa Wolfin
2:55 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Joseph Boutros Agape
3:00 pm – Alcohol Ink class with Taisha Teal
3:00 pm – The Beauty of Color class with Lauren Morris
3:15 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Josephine Tambwe Feza Kabibi
3:35 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Inanna Jiang
4:00 pm – AI Art: A New Era panel discussion
5:05 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Rae Vena
7:00 pm – Art Masters competition
9:00 pm – Doors close

Sunday, May 7th

11:00 am – Doors open
11:10 am – 15 Minutes of Fame with Susan Mclennan
11:15 am – Lino Cut Print Making class with Kit Grauer and Peter Scurr
11:30 am – 15 Minutes of Fame with Max Khusid
12:15 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Maria Doering
12:30 pm – Intuitive Drawing class with Lisa Wolfin
12:30 pm – Still Life Florals in Acrylic class with Lauren Morris
12:35 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Panyu Xiao
12:55 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Oleh Oleniev
1:15 pm – 15 Minutes of Fame with Lara Trad
1:35 pm – Art demonstration by Joseph Boutros Agape and Rae Vena
2:15 pm – WILD Mixed Media class with Kathy van Gogh
2:30 pm – Art demonstration by Panyu Xiao and Audra Townsend
3:20 pm – Art demonstration by Susan Mclennan
5:00 pm – Doors close

For the full program visit the Art Vancouver website.

Art Vancouver Video

To give you an idea of what to expect at Art Vancouver, watch the videos below. The first one shows scenes of the Opening Night event at the Vancouver Convention Centre in 2022. The second video shows scenes of the event from 2023.

Some of the art featured in this second video includes pieces by Paul Ygartua, Karissa Narukami, Elizabeth Cross, Mila Chanel, Lee Kyo Dong and Iva Staykova (all of which are artists based in the Lower Mainland).