Welcome Centre A!

Centre A is a leading public art gallery currently situated in the heart of Vancouver’s Chinatown. Our purpose is to be an engaged participant in the ongoing production of a pluralistic and democratic society. We strive to activate contemporary art’s vital role in building and understanding the long and dynamic Asia-Canada relationship, while tackling questions of broader concern from Asian and Asian-diasporic perspectives.

Receiving funding from multiple levels of government, we take our responsibility to the public very seriously. While we play an active role in community enlivenment and conviviality, we are a means for broader cultural productivity; a local and trans-national community building apparatus that acts as a conduit for the contest of ideas and a site for the contemplation of issues of contemporary concern.

In addition to our exhibition space, we house a reading room with one of the best collections of Asian art books in the country (including the Finlayson Collection of Rare Asian Art Books). In these facilities and beyond, we rigorously engage in culture-making through research, curatorial engagement with artists, mentorship of emerging arts professionals, presentation of works, public dialogues and various forms of documentation.

HISTORY

Centre A was founded in 1999 by Hank Bull (Founding Director), Zheng Shengtian and Stephanie Holmquist, who assembled an all-star board consisting of such distinguished figures as Milton Wong, Joanne Louie Mah, Joe Wai and Anndraya Luui. Through their, and subsequent boards’ leadership, as well as the contributions of our curators and directors (Sadira Rodrigues, Alice Ming Wai Jim, Makiko Hara, Haema Sivanesan and Tyler Russell), and a robust list of donors, volunteers, interns and staff, Centre A continues to make an important impact on Vancouver’s art scene and community at large.

Over the years, Centre A has worked with countless artists including Yoko Ono, Ho Tam, Vanessa Kwan, Young Hae Chang Heavy Industries, Hong Kong Exile, Khan Lee and Subodh Gupta. Additionally, we have collaborated with numerous organizations, locally and internationally, such as the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, the Vancouver Art Gallery and Long March.