Walter Phillips Gallery
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Walter Phillips Gallery (WPG) was established in 1976 in Banff, Alberta, as a part on the Banff Centre in the of Banff National Park. Walter Phillips was a printmaker and painter, from the 1930s to the 1950s, who played a seminal role in the development of the visual arts program in The Banff School of Fine Arts. After its conception, it quickly evolved into a small but dynamic gallery and became known for a contemporary art program that championed curatorial innovation with a commitment to emerging forms of art including video and performance.
For contemporary artists, particularly those engaged in alternative forms of practice, the WPG remains an essential and principle site where art is presented to an audience for critical reception. In an effort to ensure a broad and balanced representation of the different areas of research at the Centre, the Gallery exhibits and collects: painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, textiles, photography and new media-based works. The Gallery's substantial collection of video art is housed in the Paul D. Fleck Library at The Banff Centre and is available for public viewing. The Walter Phillips Gallery operates under the jurisdiction of the Visual Arts Department at The Banff Centre. [1]
The Gallery's publication program presents new ideas for understanding the social, historical, political and aesthetic realms in which many of today's artworks exist. Most of these publications are published as Walter Phillips Gallery Editions by the Banff Centre Press. Publications include: Making a Noise! Aboriginal Perspectives on Art, Art History, Critical Writing and Community, edited by Lee-Ann Martin (2005), Aural Cultures, edited by Jim Drobnick (2004), Beyond the Box: Diverging Curatorial Practices (2003), Computer Voices / Speaking Machines (2001), When Pain Strikes, edited by Bill Burns, Cathy Busby and Kim Sawchuk (1999), Ken Lum: Photo-Mirrors (1998), Radio Rethink: Art, Sound and Transmission, edited by Daina Augaitis and Dan Lander (1994) .
