Victoria council has approved a steel and glass design for an art gallery addition, a contemporary annex to the existing historic building on Moss Street.
With that approval, the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria said it will begin fundraising, with a $21-million goal.
Coun. Pam Madoff said the design is a striking contrast to the 1889 Spencer Mansion, donated as an art gallery in 1951.
“There is a principle that says: ‘When you are dealing with a heritage building, you can strive for a stunning contrast,’ ” Madoff said Friday. “That’s what’s been done, making a very contemporary building that’s attached very lightly to the heritage building.”
The multi-angled three-storey structure will add about 12,000 square feet to the existing 41,000-square-foot art gallery. It will replace the single-floor extension completed in several stages from the late 1950s onwards.
Madoff said she’s especially pleased that Spencer Mansion would be visible through the addition’s glass walls. “So the Spencer Mansion will become almost an exhibit in its own right.”
Other features include a coffee shop, a theatre with space for 220 and seating throughout to make the gallery more of a social experience. Outside, there will be parking for 26 vehicles, three motorcycles and 50 bicycles. Currently, the gallery has 21 parking stalls, although zoning regulations call for 159.
Madoff, who serves as council liaison to the Rockland community, said there will likely be parking adjustments, perhaps requiring additional regulations or signs. But the art gallery and nearby Langham Court Theatre have agreed not to host events on the same night.
“In the end, people do figure it out,” Madoff said.
The initial target for construction to start is March 2016.
Director Jon Tupper said the art gallery hopes to obtain funding from the provincial and federal governments, along with local donations.
“It’s going to be a remarkable building,” he said. “It’s nice to be able to say: ‘This is a city that values art and sees itself participating in the world of ideas.’ ”
Tupper noted that the Victoria gallery has the largest collection of works held by any gallery in B.C., almost twice as many as the Vancouver Art Gallery.
Its holdings include Canada’s second-largest collection of Asian art, after the Royal Ontario Museum, with works from China, Japan, Korea and the Middle East.
Because its existing space is limited, he said, the gallery is lucky if it can show five per cent of its collection in any year. With the addition, that could rise to eight per cent, which Tupper said is a good turnaround.
“We have some serious treasures and we need to make sure we have the space to show them,” he said. “We really need to bring out some of these beautiful pieces.”
