Satellite Spaces

Christou Gallery

The Helen Christou Gallery located on Level 9, under the U of L Library.


Helen Christou Gallery
Level 9, Under the U of L Library
4401 University Drive
Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
T1K 3M4

The Christou Gallery is open for viewing 8 am – 10 pm daily.

The Helen Christou Gallery is the University of Lethbridge Art Gallery’s primary satellite space. Located in the junction of the Centre for the Arts and the University Library, it is part of a main pedestrian route onto campus. The space is thus highly visible and connects passers-by with the U of L Art Gallery’s programs. The gallery is named after the wife of the U of L’s first chancellor as she passed away at the time of the construction of the space. The Helen Christou Gallery is designed to exhibit smaller framed works and objects in cases. It is thereby flexible and can support more “museum” types of exhibitions with objects and archival material to provide context . Exhibitions in this space can be an extension from the Main Gallery or stand alone featuring works from the U of L Art Collection and installations by artists specific to the unique location. Given the smaller scale, the Helen Christou Gallery is regularly used for museum studies interns to curate projects and for first-time exhibitions by emerging and local artists.

Project Wall

Dr. Margaret (Marmie) Perkins Hess Gallery (adjacent to)
W600, Centre for the Arts
4401 University Drive
Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
T1K 3M4

The Hess Gallery is open weekdays 9 am – 4:30 pm, select Thursdays until 9 pm for our “After Hours” series and select Saturdays for our “ARTLab” series.

I think people can easily agree that the advent of the smart phone has been terrific for the promotion of events and cultural organizations, but for the U of L Art Gallery, it has meant another, less obvious boon for our visibility. The wall flanking the entrance to the main gallery used to be a bank of pay phones, but when the university removed this obsolete technology, it made a great opportunity for the U of L Art Gallery to create a dedicated promotional wall. We requested a renovation that included the gallery standard drywall over 3/4 inch plywood backing so that the wall could support hanging things in frames and we did have the foresight to build in electrical and internet connections. Spurred by successful student design projects I had seen around campus, I initiated a call for proposals from the students and faculty in New Media to create something for the new wall to raise the profile of the main art gallery for those walking by. I had assumed that we’d get ideas that involved applying vinyl or other traditional options. Instead, Leanne Elias, Department of New Media, delighted and surprised me with a fabulously innovative idea to install an interactive projection. Brendan Matkin created a superb inaugural project and, with the system in place, we will be interested in further proposals for ideas to promote the gallery and our exhibitions and programs.

Development
Brendan Matkin

Advisors
Alyssa Buck
Dana Cooley
Leanne Elias
Carl Spencer

The Art Gallery would like to thank the experts in U of L Facilities for their work in renovating the wall and installing the technology:
U of L Facilities
Jim Vanderzee
Bill Hudains
Mick Nutley
Al Mueller
Pack Peterson

Project Wall Archives