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Visual Arts Alberta Association

A recent but highly noticeable newcomer to the provincial arts scene is the Visual Arts Alberta Association (VAAA). Four provincial groups—the Alberta Community Art Clubs Association, Alberta Society of Artists, Alberta Potters Association, and Alberta Handweavers, Spinner, and Dyers—came together to found the VAAA in 1996. The Alberta Foundation for the Arts designates it as a Provincial Arts Service Organization (PASO).

A very active community member, the VAAA works in various capacities. It provides services such as marketing programs and professional development courses directly to artists. The VAAA newsletter, formerly called The Voice and now The Visual Arts Alberta Association Newsletter, is a quarterly publication distributed throughout the province.

The association is shaped by the goals of increasing the visibility and appreciation for arts in Alberta, and being accessible to the artist community and general public it serves. VAAA support for the arts in Alberta is achieved in several ways.

It runs the Visual Arts Alberta Gallery, which presents juried member exhibitions to the public. A balance of members is demonstrated by the work shown in the Gallery; it represents students, emerging artists and professionals. Not only has the VAAA exhibited work in Alberta, in May of 2004, it will be sponsoring a major exhibit in Hong-Kong and Shanghai, China.

Providing operational funding for qualified provincial visual art organizations, giving three annual fine arts scholarships to high school students and contributing significant funding for Red Deer College's Summerscapes Visual Art School for Teens, the VAAA visibly shares its financial resources.

Other VAAA activities include collaborating with Harcourt House, its most proximal arts neighbour, as well as with the Latitude 53 Society of Artists and the Society for Northern Alberta Print Artists (SNAP).

In the greater community, the VAAA involves itself in Artists on the Wards, an innovative program provided in partnership with artists and University of Alberta Hospital patients and staff. The goal of the program is to contribute to patient comfort through creative forms of expression.

With its intense level of numerous activities, the VAAA acts as a catalyst for dynamic partnerships and the development of Alberta's artistic excellence.

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