The Art Gallery of Alberta is channeling its creative energy to boost membership numbers that have failed to come back since the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
Membership bottomed out to roughly 2,800 individuals during the pandemic, which started in 2020 and wasn\u2019t declared over until 2023, according to Catherine Crowston, the AGA\u2019s executive director and chief curator.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That is a major drop from the 10,000-member peak seen when the renovated gallery reopened in 2010.<\/p>\n
Although memberships have increased since then \u2014 there are currently about 6,500 members \u2014 Crowston told Edmonton AM that her organization is still trying to navigate the lingering impacts of the pandemic.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of change in the way that people \u2026 interact with cultural organizations,\u201d Crowston said on Thursday. \u201cI think that people are making plans for their lives in different ways, and so I think that membership is one thing where we see maybe a hesitancy to commit to something over a longer period of time.\u201d<\/p>\n
LISTEN | The AGA is trying to boost membership numbers:<\/p>\n
Edmonton AM7:20Reviving declining membership numbers at the AGA<\/p>\n
The Art Gallery of Alberta has seen a decline in memberships. Now there’s a push to improve those membership numbers. Catherine Crowston is the executive director and chief curator of the AGA.<\/p>\n
Now, Crowston said, the organization is working to foster that longer-term commitment by\u00a0 demonstrating that membership isn\u2019t just about securing free admission.<\/p>\n
Membership is \u201calso about being part of a larger kind of community [while] contributing to arts organizations in the city and across the province,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Part of that effort was last year\u2019s establishment of the Women for the Art Gallery of Alberta committee (WAGA), a group of 10 women with a goal to reach 10,000 memberships.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s an ambitious goal, but \u2026 there\u2019s so many activities that we\u2019re working together on to engage people with the gallery in different ways,\u201d Crowston said.<\/p>\n
Teresa Melton, co-chair of WAGA, said she was driven to get involved with the committee by her passion for sustaining Edmonton’s vital arts and cultural institutions.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think in order for Edmonton to be a thriving city, we really need to support and use the incredible assets that we have,\u201d Melton said.<\/p>\n
Melton said WAGA has been collaborating with the gallery on programs and members-only events to boost patronage, while working with the organization to promote engagement \u201cvia the root of membership.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMembership is just one easy entry point to the art gallery. So not only is it important for the success of the art gallery itself as an asset to the city, but it’s important for supporting artists, art education, and exposure to the world of art,\u201d Melton said.<\/p>\n
According to the gallery\u2019s website, membership plans are available for adults, seniors and couples, with a one-year adult pass costing about $58.<\/p>\n
The Art Gallery of Alberta\u2019s 2024 annual report shows that of its nearly $6.4 million in total revenue, membership fees accounted for about $116,000, while general admission brought in almost $200,000.<\/p>\n
Construction woes<\/p>\n
In addition to the impact of the pandemic, Crowston said that ongoing construction around the downtown building has also been a major hindrance for visitors.<\/p>\n
\u201cDowntown Edmonton, from our perspective, has been under construction for about 10 years,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
According to Crowston, these projects have limited parking availability and made it difficult for people to navigate downtown to reach the gallery.<\/p>\n
But the gallery isn\u2019t the only organization in Edmonton’s Arts District noticing issues from construction.<\/p>\n
The Winspear Centre has \u201cheard clearly from patrons and subscribers\u201d that construction and a lack of parking have made it harder to attend performances, according to Hanna Choi, vice-president of marketing and business development for the Winspear Centre and Edmonton Symphony Orchestra.<\/p>\n
In an emailed statement sent through a spokesperson, Choi said the organization recently received survey feedback that suggested 65 per cent of respondents have found it difficult accessing the concert hall.<\/p>\n
Of those respondents, 70 per cent specifically cited road construction and changes to parking payment, due to the removal of EPark machines, as reasons.<\/p>\n
In an emailed statement to CBC News, the City of Edmonton said it \u201crecognizes that ongoing construction can be disruptive and appreciates the public\u2019s patience as we work to rehabilitate, new and build new infrastructure, improving access for all.\u201d<\/p>\n
Melton said the gallery is beginning to see re-engagement because of the committee and the organizations\u2019 combined efforts.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we tell people that we’re engaged in this opportunity to revitalize and elevate the art gallery \u2026 the\u00a0 majority of people are like, \u2018oh, such a great idea. So glad that you guys are doing this.\u2019\u201d said Melton. \u201cSo we’re really seeing a lot of positive traction with that.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Art Gallery of Alberta is channeling its creative energy to boost membership numbers that have failed to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":228491,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[442,498,499,500,501,156,111,139,69],"class_list":{"0":"post-228490","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-design","8":"tag-arts","9":"tag-arts-and-design","10":"tag-artsanddesign","11":"tag-artsdesign","12":"tag-design","13":"tag-entertainment","14":"tag-new-zealand","15":"tag-newzealand","16":"tag-nz"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228490","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=228490"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228490\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/228491"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=228490"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=228490"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=228490"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}