Yukon Legislative Assembly: Tribute to Yukon Art Society's 50th Anniversary

Early members of the Yukon Art Society (date unknown)

“In paying tribute today to this wonderful organization, I want to acknowledge the founders and partners, board members, mentors, organizers, and volunteers, past and present. Thank you for your incredible dedication to art in our Yukon."

- Hon. Ms. McLean, Minister of Tourism and Culture

On October 21, the Hon. Ms. McLean, Minister of Tourism and Culture, Ms. Van Bibber, Member for Porter Creek North, and Ms. Hanson, Member for Whitehorse Centre paid tribute to Yukon Art Society's 50th anniversary in the House of the Yukon Legislative Assembly.

The Yukon Art Society was founded in April of 1970 by a grassroots group of artists who were determined to share their passion for the arts with the greater community.
 
Over the past half century, the organization has grown and evolved, but the legacy of our first members’ work lives on in the dedicated network of volunteers, partners, instructors, artists, and patrons who share their vision of a vibrant, creative territory.

We are grateful to the members of the Yukon Legislative Assembly for their beautiful tribute, and we dedicate it to all of the boards, staff, and tireless volunteers of the organization that came before us over the past 50 years whose work brought us to where we are today. 

Thank you to all of our members past and present for being part of our story.

Below, you can read the Hon. Ms. McLean's remarks, or watch the entire tribute.
 
Leighann Chalykoff, Chair
on behalf of the Yukon Art Society Board of Directors and staff

Tribute to the Yukon Art Society's 50th Anniversary
by the Honourable Jeanie McLean,
Minister of Tourism and Culture

“Yukon Art Society was founded in April 1970 by a group of artists who sought to stimulate the public’s interest in the already thriving arts community in the territory. One of the territory’s oldest non-profits, Yukon Art Society has become a beloved and important fixture in the Yukon art scene, the largest visual arts organization.

“For fifty years, the Yukon Art Society has stayed true to its vision to support and increase exposure to Yukon artists and craftspeople. Its reach and impact cannot be overstated. The Yukon Permanent Art Collection is home to numerous works by founding and current members of the society. The Points of View annual exhibit, Artists of the Month, the Annual Art Auction, and the long-running and popular Arts in the Park summer concert series at LePage Park all came from the heart and the hard work of this fine organization.

“It is also through the effort of the Yukon Art Society that we have the wonderful Arts Underground creative hub, made possible through a generous partnership with the Hougen Group. The important community space acts as a gallery, a museum, a studio, a classroom, even a retail space for both artwork and supplies that give life to them.

“For many years the Art Society had operated a small gallery in the Captain Martin House at LePage Park. The move to Arts Underground was a big change for a small grassroots organization, bringing them to Main Street and the attention of a much bigger audience. It is a welcoming and inclusive space where those passionate about art come together to learn and share with one another, hone their craft and explore and express their imagination.

"Within this creative headquarters the society operates two galleries dedicated to the exhibition of emerging and established artists. In addition, the Hougen Heritage Gallery acts as a presentation space for heritage collections, including quarterly rotations of shows curated by both the MacBride Museum and the Friends of the Yukon Archives Society.

“The Yukon Art Society also administers the Artist in the School Program which allows skilled artists to provide high-quality, engaging, and culturally diverse programming to students across the Yukon. Further through the Community School Touring Fund hundreds of students in Yukon communities get access to live performance with an educational focus every year.

“Yukon Art Society also oversees enrollment and membership in the popular Created in Yukon program, which showcases authentic Yukon-made arts and crafts for visitors and locals alike.

“In paying tribute today to this wonderful organization, I want to acknowledge the founders and partners, board members, mentors, organizers, and volunteers, past and present. Thank you for your incredible dedication to art in our Yukon.

“Yukon Government is proud to support Yukon Art Society and we look forward to the artistic offerings and innovation yet to come. Thank you to the Yukon Art Society for fifty years of enriching the lives of Yukoners, and for keeping arts in the territory vital and vibrant. Thank you, Mister Speaker.”

- Hon. Ms. McLean, Minister of Tourism and Culture, 21 October 2020

Yukon Art Society Garden Party at Captain Martin House, 1 July 1989.

Ted Harrison at the Yukon Art Society Fence Painting Contest in 1979

Receiving a heritage award from the City of Whitehorse in 1993

Water, Yukon Art Society Members' Exhibition at Arts Underground, July 2019