The Art Gallery of Peterborough is gearing up for its It’s All About ART, the gallery’s largest fundraising event of the year, and in honour of the gallery’s 50th anniversary, things are getting groovy.
That’s right — this year’s auction is transporting guests back to the 1970s when the gallery was just getting its start. Alongside stunning local artwork, the live event will see no shortage of disco balls, bell-bottoms, and the musical stylings of the decade’s greats like Elton John and Pink Floyd.
“It really is a fun opportunity to really bring people’s attention to 50 years of volunteer work, 50 years of local artists supporting and exhibiting, and 50 years of contributions that have been made by our community to help this organization thrive,” says Art Gallery of Peterborough director Celeste Scopelites. “It’s really quite amazing when we look back at the history.”
With a cash bar and hors d’oeuvres, this year’s live auction is taking place on Saturday, October 26th at The Venue (286 George St. N.) in downtown Peterborough, with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. and tickets priced at $75.
Following the success of last year’s hybrid fundraiser, there will also be an online silent auction running from 9 a.m. on Friday, October 11th until 9 p.m. on Saturday, October 26th. No tickets are needed to participate in the online auction; you just need to register for free as a bidder.
Funds raised from both auctions will go towards the gallery’s exhibitions and educational programming, like Family Sundays and artist talks.
“We are and always have been a free gallery, and we’re supported by generous donations and initiatives like the fundraiser,” says Scopelites. “The fundraiser is critically important to support the kind of programming that we do, which is positioned to be informative, engaging, and inclusive.”
The gallery’s fundraising auction has been a long-running and popular event for local art lovers, giving them the opportunity to purchase artworks by local artists. From early events running as a masquerade gala before gaining the “It’s All About ART” title in 2009 and moving offsite in 2015, the auction has evolved over the years.
That includes during the pandemic, when the auction was held entirely online. That turned out to be a blessing in disguise when the auction returned in 2023 as an in-person event but retained the online component.
“Having an online auction as well means you can have people who don’t want to go to the party, or who live far away, still bidding on the artwork,” says Scopelites. “The online component is also beneficial to spreading the word about supporting the Art Gallery of Peterborough and raising awareness about the art being made in this region. This double platform really helps us in a variety of ways.”
Using the auction website or the mobile app Auctria (available for Android and iPhone), bidders can browse all the artwork that is available — including items that will only be available at the live auction for bidding — and get live updates for items on which they have placed a bid. All online auction winners can arrange to pick up their artworks or have them shipped.
According to Art Gallery of Peterborough curator Fynn Leitch, the combination of the live auction and online auction has proven to be both popular with participants and beneficial for fundraising.
“People really enjoyed having lots of different access points and lots of different ways of interacting with the auction,” Leitch says. “We had our most successful year on record ever last year, so we’re really excited and poised for success.”
It’s All About ART will see a range of work both from artists in the Kawarthas as well as a few based outside the region. The auctions offer a vast selection of styles and mediums from ceramics and paintings to jewellery and photography.
“These are often artists that we’ve already connected with and are already working with in a number of different ways — through exhibitions, they have work in our shops, or they are artists who are on our Kawartha Autumn Studio Tour,” says Leitch.
“These artists really see the value in the Art Gallery of Peterborough. They’ve seen it for the past 50 years, and they want to see it for another 50 years.”
One of the 40 artists whose work will be available during It’s All About ART is Steven Vero, a Peterborough-based painter and former art teacher.
In August, he was selected to be featured in the prestigious Chianciano Biennale, a contemporary international art competition in Tuscany, Italy, where he won first prize in the Chianciano Biennale Award for Abstract Artwork for his oil-on-canvas work “Calculations.”
“He’s an incredible person, but also an incredible artist with incredible range,” says Leitch. “It’s so often that we spend our time talking about the incredible richness of the arts community here, and sometimes we forget that the incredible richness of our arts community is recognized far beyond our community.”
Another artist whose works will be available is Peterborough-based photographer Arnold Zageris.
“He’s somebody who takes photography as a technique and a medium to extraordinary lengths by positioning his body in really precarious ways to capture unforgettable moments,” says Leitch. “We are really excited to share his work for the upcoming auction.”
In addition to participating in It’s All About ART, Zageris will also have a solo exhibition opening on Saturday, November 9th in the main gallery at the Art Gallery of Peterborough.
Scopelites adds that another artwork she thinks will do well at the auction is a functional glass piece from Apsley-based glassblower Susan Rankin.
“It’s an extraordinary fine art piece and I’m just so excited to have this work that really uses these beautiful, really complex techniques,” she says.
“She’s been practising glass for many years and is represented in a number of galleries so it’s great to have her work as a prime example of the extraordinary glass work that’s done in Canada,” adds Leitch.
Until Sunday, October 20th, interested buyers, art collectors, and gallery supporters will have the opportunity to see the works to be included at both auctions through a limited time exhibition at the Art Gallery of Peterborough.
“It allows people to make a plan before coming to the auction,” says Leitch.
The It’s All About ART fundraiser benefits everyone, as the gallery gets much-needed funds to support programming, art lovers add to their collection, and participating artists reach a wider audience, with sale prices at auction potentially increasing the appraisal of their future works.
“Auctions are what define the value of artwork for the most part,” Leitch points out. “Give generously because, from an economic standpoint, artists are small business owners. We’re supporting the economy of Peterborough in addition to making sure that the Art Gallery of Peterborough gets to stay here and serve the community for another 50 years.”
And this year, as Scopelites says, “It’s going to be a real groovy night.”
For more about It’s All About ART or to purchase tickets for the live auction, visit www.agp.on.ca/its-all-about-art/. Tickets are also available by calling 705-743-9179 or visiting the gallery at 250 Crescent Street in downtown Peterborough.
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