New exhibitions open at the Art Gallery of Peterborough on June 7, 2023

Peterborough, ON – Join the Art Gallery of Peterborough on the evening of Wednesday, June 7, 2023 at 7 p.m. for a reception to celebrate the opening of two new exhibitions.

Special Project: Tea with the Queens is a short-run project that has been developed by the gallery to offer the public an opportunity to see David Bierk’s painting, “Portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II” before it goes into collection storage joining the Permanent Collection.

Made for the Peterborough Memorial Centre, the painting was installed on January 9, 1980, where it presided over countless sports games, concerts, and events until the State Funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on September 19, 2022. The original commissioning documents, which are held at Trent Valley Archives, state that if the painting ever needed to be removed it should be donated to the Art Gallery of Peterborough, or the Peterborough Public Library, whichever was preferred. The Art Gallery of Peterborough acquired the painting for the Permanent Collection earlier this year.

From the evening of June 7 to June 29, it will hang in the gallery alongside works by artists who are Indigenous, queer, and living with disabilities. A key component of this project is a series of special afternoon tea sittings or "Tea with the Queens," hosted by local drag performers Betty Baker and Sahira Q. This exhibition will be on view until June 29, 2023. Seatings will take place on Sunday, June 11 at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., Wednesday, June 14 at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., and Thursday, June 22 at 4 p.m. Tickets are available to purchase in person at the gallery or by calling 705-743-9179 during regular business hours.

Also on view: Wayfinding: Works from the Youth Art Mentorship Program. Selected by a jury of arts professionals earlier this year, local youth artists Amber Rose, A. Carabine, Charley Pesonen, Kellan Mackenzie, Lauren Armstrong, and Mujgan Hussein Zada have spent the last three months working with artist-mentor Spencer J. Harrison to explore the professional practice of being an artist and produce an exhibition of their work.

This exhibition is the culmination of the Youth Art Mentorship Program. The works in “Wayfinding” speak with visceral conviction. This cohort of six young artists have brought forward diverse perspectives, informed by lived experience. Through storytelling, experimentation, imagination, and documentation, they invite us to chart pathways to different futures by opening fissures and forging new connections. This exhibition will be on view until September 24, 2023.

The Art Gallery of Peterborough is located at 250 Crescent St., Peterborough, Ontario. The gallery is open Tuesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free. Call the gallery at 705-743-9179 or visit their website, agp.on.ca.

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