The things that hold us

THE THINGS THAT HOLD US OPENS SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 19

This autumn, CVAG’s programming considers our relationships with the land, with each other, and with the histories that brought us to where we find ourselves.

The exhibition The things that hold us, presents the work of Manitoba artist Tricia Wasney.

Through sustained creative research and development over the past four years, the artist has developed bodies of work informed by forgotten or hidden histories, the specificity of place and the materials she discovers — local, organic, pre-owned and waste materials are incorporated into her work as they arrive with their own layers of embedded meaning.

The exhibition includes work made about Manitoba landscapes and how her own Prairie landscape affects her, others made as a result reflecting on how the landscape in the Comox Valley impacted her. Some work was made entirely during the residencies in Riding Mountain National Park (MB) and at the McLoughlin Gardens in the Comox Valley (BC), and some pieces were developed and/or re-worked in her studio in Winnipeg.

Additionally, the four years have included unexpected and destabilizing loss in her personal life that has infiltrated the work.

As a whole, the exhibition reflects on the impossibility of permanence, about finding, losing, and finally celebrating that which has been found and commemorating that which has been lost.

RESIDENCIES

CVAG Curated Residency 1 | May 2023 | Tricia Wasney + Richard Dyck at the McLoughlin Gardens

CVAG Curated Residency 2 | May 2024 | Tricia Wasney at the McLoughlin Gardens

CVAG Curated Residency 3 | May 2025 | Tricia Wasney at the McLoughlin Gardens

EXHIBITION

The things that hold us | Tricia Wasney | September 19 – November 21, 2026

EVENTS

Memorial Medals | Saturday, September 19, 2026 | 11:00am – 12:30pm | Artist-Facilitated Make Art Workshop | REGISTRATION REQUIRED

Art Opening Celebration | Saturday, September 19, 2026 | 1:00pm | Celebration + Reception + Artist Talk | All Welcome

The Comox Valley Art Gallery is committed to creating safer spaces where everyone can participate.

CVAG spaces are ACCESSIBLE. All ages are welcome. Staff are available to answer any questions and to provide orientation to the presentation and gallery spaces.

ADMISSION is free. Donations are appreciated.

PUBLIC HEALTH CONSIDERATIONS: We ask that visitors choose not to visit if they are experiencing symptoms of colds and flus.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The Comox Valley Art Gallery is grateful to operate on the Unceded Traditional Territory of the K’ómoks Nation.

This convergent program was made possible through the support of our FUNDERS: City of Courtenay, Canada Council for the Arts, BC Arts Council, Government of Canada, Province of BC, Comox Valley Regional District, Town of Comox | LOCAL SUPPORT: ABC Printing, Hitec Screen Printing, and SD71 Printshop | COMMUNITY COLLABORATOR: McLoughlin Gardens Society.

The artist is grateful to the Winnipeg Arts Council and the Manitoba Arts Council for supporting the creation of this work.

Special thanks to Richard Dyck.

Exhibitions

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  The things that hold us

  Reflecting Tricia Wasney’s experiences over the past four years, beginning with her first curated residency...

  September 19 - November 21 2026