For more than 20 years, the Ottawa Art Gallery (OAG) has welcomed attendees for the Give to Get Art Auction, an annual fundraising event in support of local art, artists, and the OAG’s public exhibitions, permanent collection, and community programming.
This prominent annual event will take place on Thursday, May 18, 2023, between 5:30 PM and 8:30 PM in the ultramodern Alma Duncan Salon on the third floor of the OAG (10 Daly Avenue).
All funds raised through the Give to Get Art Auction will help to ensure that the OAG can continue to:
Offer FREE admission to our exhibitions, vernissages, and public programs, reaching patrons and participants from toddlers to seniors.
Grow our Mental Health and Art Therapy initiatives through the partnerships we have fostered with our Creative Space program, which is a service that our community needs now more than ever.
Support local artists across their life cycle, with specific approaches for emerging, mid-career, and mature artists, along a spectrum of strategies and resources including mentorship, exhibition support, profile building, and other means to enhance an artist's continued evolution.
Foster an inclusive, welcoming environment for everyone to engage with and enjoy, including taking active steps to recruit and retain staff and board members from the Black, Indigenous, racialized, francophone, 2SLGBTQQIA+, and disability-identified communities, as well as conducting an annual audit of our collections, programs and operations to identify gaps, systemic barriers and challenges throughout all areas of our operations.
Further green practices throughout the OAG building and our organizational operations, including a net-zero audit and plan to minimize waste produced by the OAG's programs and administration.
And so much more! Additionally, 50% of the proceeds from the art auction sales will go directly to the exhibiting artists, who are all locally based and at varying stages of their careers.
The 2023 event will inspire attendees from across the region as we celebrate the 5th year anniversary of the new OAG building. Mix and mingle with over 350 of Ottawa’s corporate leaders, philanthropic community members, artists and special guests while enjoying a variety of passed hors d’oeuvres and interactive food stations, savouring local wine, beer and spirits, and bidding on a selection of 100 custom artworks created by artists from across the region.
NEW this year: Prepare to be immersed in the live art activations and ambient music that will entertain and delight attendees throughout the evening, and don’t miss out on the exciting jewelry box raffle featuring one-of-a-kind jewelry from an assortment of Canadian artisans and high-end jewellers!
Last year the event attracted over 350 attendees from across the Ottawa area, and together we raised over $113,000 in support of local arts and cultural development at the OAG, plus an additional $22,000 that went directly to the exhibiting artists from the auction proceeds. Together, let’s make this year another enormous success!
About the Ottawa Art Gallery (OAG)
The OAG is a registered charity (Charitable No. 137078960RR0001)
2023 marks the 5th anniversary of the new OAG building (and the 35th anniversary since the OAG was founded)
The OAG is a cultural anchor in the downtown core, and a sustainable and innovative institution that is a positive economic contributor to the City of Ottawa. The OAG’s mission is to tell the story of our community’s evolution through art, and to create a positive vision for our city’s future.
The OAG holds a world-class collection of art for the people of the region, and the programs at the OAG reach patrons and participants from toddlers to seniors.
The OAG offers FREE admission to their exhibitions and public programming, which present regional art within a national and international context.
The OAG also plays a key role in responding to major civic challenges that our region is currently facing, including providing critical mental health support through our art and wellness programs and partnerships; creating renewed community cohesion to help us overcome social polarization; and assisting in local and downtown-specific economic recovery efforts through an arts lens.