Victoria Art Gallery gets $2.67 million endowment

MARSHA LEDERMAN
VANCOUVER — The Globe and Mail, Jan. 20 2014 
Artist Anthony Thorn moved to Victoria in 1980 from Thunder Bay, Ont., and almost immediately discovered the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, in a residential neighbourhood close to his apartment. He became a member, and says he was welcomed and made to feel as if he might become a good addition to the artistic community. When he read in the past couple of years about current director Jon Tupper's decision to renovate and expand the gallery in its current location, rather than continue its more than 30-year search for space downtown, Mr. Thorn was impressed with the vision. The artist asked for a meeting with Mr. Tupper, to see if he could help make it happen. He has. On Monday, the gallery announced a gift of more than $2.5-million from Mr. Thorn to support the gallery’s redevelopment.

“This is the largest single monetary gift we’ve had in the last 65 years. It means that we can start looking at our dreams of renovating and restoring the current location,” Mr. Tupper told The Globe and Mail on Monday.
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