THE CANADIAN PRESS

Stumble Upon

del.icio.us

Digg

Facebook

Print

Email

Speak Up

VANCOUVER, B.C. - The Vancouver Art Gallery is launching an outdoor exhibition space on downtown Georgia Street, with prominent Chinese photographer O Zhang as the first featured artist.

Enlarge Photo

THE CANADIAN PRESS/ HO

An architectural rendering of Offsite exhibition space featuring O Zhang's Horizon (Sky), is pictured in this undated handout photo. The Vancouver Art Gallery will launch its new outdoor exhibition space, Offsite, with a site-specific installation by Chinese artist O Zhang from July 20 to November 29, 2009.

Her installation "Horizon (Sky)" depicts young girls in a rural part of central China, posing in front of a camera for the first time. It will run from July 20 to Nov. 29.

The space at the foot of the new Shangri-La Hotel will present exhibits by local and international contemporary artists, the gallery says. Works will be mounted on an L-shaped wall facing Georgia, the main thoroughfare leading through the heart of the downtown business district into Stanley Park.

"It's an ideal location to have an extension of the gallery that's visible and accessible on a daily basis to thousands of residents and visitors," said gallery spokesperson Dana Sullivant.

Exhibits will be chosen with outdoor conditions in mind.

"They will be works that will be specifically suited and installed, knowing that they're going to be exposed to the elements," said Sullivant.

In the case of the O Zhang prints, which have been commissioned specially for the site, the gallery is not expecting anyone to try to take one home to put on their living room wall.

"They're huge - they weigh several thousand pounds - so it's not possible to just walk up and take one off the wall," said Sullivant.