Fun Family Activities at the Vancouver Art Gallery

Credit: Melissa Baker

Draw, craft and learn with your kids while surrounded by the masterpieces in the Vancouver Art Gallery

Explore your inner Picasso while the kids burn off steam at the Vancouver Art Gallery

The Vancouver Art Gallery’s Weekly Family Programs give every family member a chance to make art, enjoy art and – most importantly – roam free throughout the VAG.

Trained educators combine art and activities to give you and your kids the chance to explore the gallery space together, draw and make crafts, all while learning about the art in the gallery. Most of the activities are geared to kids aged 5 to 12, and the gallery provides materials that give you the tools to discuss art with the kids.

Saturday Activities at the VAG – Art Agents and Art Tracks

Every Saturday the Vancouver Art Gallery’s “art agents” explore art exhibitions with the whole family through activities like children’s crafts, art games, and mini-tours (called “Art Tracks.”)

All of the kids’ activities are centred around the current art shows. In April and May the art agents can be found on the second floor of the gallery in the Beat Nation: Hip Hop and Aboriginal Culture exhibition. Kids get to sketch masks on red and black paper, talk about stories within art, and make magnet collages inspired by artwork made out of coloured tape.

The art hunt challenges kids to find objects (like skateboards, butterflies and bikes—the objects change with every exhibition) hidden within artworks in the gallery. It’s a great way to get a close look at each piece.

Sunday Family Activities at the VAG – The Making Place

Image by: Melissa Baker

Every second and fourth Sunday of each month, the Vancouver Art Gallery buzzes with kids’ arts and crafts activities as educators and a team of volunteers set up The Making Place on the fourth floor.

As the name suggests, this is where kids and parents get crafty and make things! There are always three activities/crafts: two that kids can take home and one activity that everyone contributes to, which stays in the gallery. The activities are always changing, so come back often to make and learn something new each time.

Currently, one of the family activities is inspired by the exhibition Lights Out! Canadian Painting from the 1960s and has kids make colourful artwork using tape and watercolour paint.

Vancouver Art Gallery Family FUSE Weekend

A few times a year, the gallery pulls out all the stops to give families an unforgettable weekend of fun activities. During the Family FUSE Weekend, art agents engage families on every gallery floor, including multiple activities at an amplified Making Place, as well as musical and dance performances.

The best part about Family FUSE Weekend is that admission is free for children under 12 when accompanied by an adult. The next Family FUSE Weekend is scheduled for June 16 and 17.

The activities that weekend will focus on the exhibition Collecting Matisse and Modern Masters: The Cone Sisters of Baltimore and the journeys the sisters took to develop their art collection. Expect to see drawing and collage activities based on the colourful paintings of Matisse, as well activities around the concept of journeys.

Check the Vancouver Art Gallery website for a monthly listing of activities and for admission prices.