Burnaby Art Gallery: a practical guide to visiting

Burnaby Art Gallery is at 6344 Deer Lake Avenue in an Edwardian Arts and Crafts-style building dating to 1911. The building is Ceperley House, also known as Fairacres.

Henry and Grace Ceperley bought a strawberry farm on the north shore of Deer Lake in 1909 and built the house over the next two years as their retirement home. English architect R.P.S. Twizell designed it. The City restored Ceperley House to its 1911 appearance in renovations completed in 2000.

The gallery describes itself as Canada’s only public art museum dedicated to collecting works of art on paper. Its collecting, preserving and presenting mission began in 1967, and it manages more than 7,000 works in the City of Burnaby Permanent Art Collection, as well as the City of Burnaby Public Art Collection.

The collection includes substantial holdings by Coast Salish artists and significant representation of West Coast printmaking. Artists represented include Alistair Bell, Marianna Schmidt, Jack Shadbolt, Gordon Smith, Takao Tanabe and Anna Wong.

Exhibitions are presented throughout the year, with local, regional and national artistic talent. Artists use varied approaches to engage with culture, politics and lived experience, so the subjects and works on display change.

A typical schedule includes exhibitions in winter, spring, summer, fall and late fall or winter. The gallery also organizes offsite exhibitions, which can bring local and emerging artists’ work to public settings or present works from the City’s collections beyond the gallery.

For context beyond what is on display, the gallery strives to publish catalogues alongside most major exhibitions. It also welcomes research inquiries about its collection, library and artist-file holdings. Collection acquisitions are reviewed by the gallery’s Collections team and the Burnaby Art Gallery Advisory Committee Acquisitions Subcommittee, which meets twice per year to review donations.

Because exhibitions and their subjects change, check the gallery’s listings before choosing what to see. The gallery’s year-round exhibition pattern means there are displays across the seasons, but the specific artists and topics vary. Avoid planning around an exhibition title without confirming that it is currently on view.

Published hours are Tuesday to Friday, 10:00 am–4:30 pm, and Saturday and Sunday, 12:00 pm–5:00 pm. The gallery is closed on Mondays and holidays. Build your visit around those hours, leaving time to see the exhibition and, if one is scheduled, take part in a talk or tour.

Exhibition-related group tours are available by booking. Contact the Education Assistant at 604-297-4414 for pricing and registration. The gallery also runs curator and artist talks, tours, workshops, summer camps, and activities for families and adults; it says it offers up to 100 public programs a year. Program details vary, so check what is scheduled for your visit.

Admission is free, and donations are welcome. The City’s visitor information gives a suggested donation of $10. If you have a particular program in mind, make that the anchor of your timing: a talk or workshop may shape how long you spend at the gallery, while a regular exhibition visit can be planned around the posted opening hours.

BAG on a Bike takes the gallery’s work beyond its building, visiting community events and gatherings in the Lower Mainland during the drier months. It is also available to book as a rental. This is a separate way to encounter the gallery’s activities, rather than an exhibition to assume will be on site during your visit.

Burnaby Art Gallery is about a 10-minute drive from Vancouver Backpacker House - 10 min walk to Metrotown skytrain station. For public-transit directions, use TransLink’s Trip Planner. If you are connecting from the airport, this guide to getting from Vancouver International Airport to Burnaby covers that journey.

Parking is limited, so consider walking, rolling, biking, carpooling or taking public transit when practical. Two electric-vehicle spaces are available on Deer Lake Avenue, which also has some street parking. Beside the gallery entrance, the surface parking area has two designated parking stalls.

The City says additional free parking may be available at Shadbolt Centre for the Arts and Burnaby Village Museum after business hours; check current access arrangements before relying on that option.

A paved path from the surface parking area leads to a wheelchair lift that provides access to the main floor. The second level is not wheelchair accessible. A wheelchair-accessible washroom is on the main floor. If you need details for a particular visit, confirm arrangements with the gallery in advance.

Burnaby Village Museum is at 6501 Deer Lake Avenue. The City describes it as a free-admission open-air museum about early-20th-century Burnaby, open seasonally.

Its subject and setting offer a different focus from the gallery’s art collections, making it a possible addition when its seasonal opening aligns with your plans. Check its operating schedule before setting out, and read this guide to Burnaby Village Museum hours, tickets and what to see.

Before you go: Opening hours, programs and access details can change. Check the official site before you go; the City of Burnaby provides the gallery’s visitor information.