Juried art exhibition opens at Surrey Art Gallery for a summer showcase of local talent

Surrey, BC – Surrey Art Gallery is pleased to host the Arts Council of Surrey’s annual summer juried exhibition ARTS 2025, on display from May 3 until July 27. Admission is free. 

A collaborative initiative between the Gallery and the Arts Council of Surrey for over four decades, this exhibition showcases the variety of artistic talents across the Lower Mainland. This year, jurors selected fifty works from entries across five categories: painting; drawing, mixed media, and printmaking on paper, sculpture and fibre art; photography; and digital, performative, and new media art. 

Entries appear in a wide range of themes and media, from captivating landscape paintings to intricate sculptures and weavings. The artworks are displayed throughout Surrey Arts Centre, and visitors are invited to vote for the People’s Choice Award at any time during their visit.  

“We were privileged to have taken part in the jury of the ARTS 2025 exhibition and were overwhelmed at the breadth of talent, ideas, and subject matter,” the jury team said in a statement. “We attempted to make selections that both represented the spirit of the exhibition and the scope of materials, techniques, and practices that were on display.” 

This year, the jury consisted of photography-based artist Brian Howell, artist and Kwantlen Polytechnic University Fine Arts faculty member Jason Wright, and Surrey Art Gallery Curator of Art and Education Initiatives Alanna Edwards. 

The close of ARTS 2025 will be celebrated along with the Gallery’s upcoming exhibitions 10 and 10: Story of Stories and Experiments in Solitude at the Gallery’s free Summer Opening Art Party on July 5 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The reception will include a conversation between exhibiting artists Lyse Lemieux and Sara Khan, as well as artmaking and music. ARTS 2025 prize winners will also be highlighted. 

On Thursday, June 5 from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., artists featured in ARTS 2025 will share reflections about their artworks and wider practices at an Artist Open Mic, part of Surrey Art Gallery Association’s free Thursday Artist Talk series. 

About the Arts Council of Surrey

The Arts Council of Surrey is a not-for-profit art advocacy organization, working to create awareness, appreciation, and pride in the cultural and artistic achievements of the Surrey community. In addition to hosting its own programming and providing an exhibition and performance space for local artists out of its location at the Newton Cultural Centre, the Arts Council promotes artmaking in the community generally, and shares resources and opportunities to support literary, performing, and visual practices of all kinds.   

About Surrey Art Gallery

Founded in 1975, Surrey Art Gallery presents contemporary art by local, national, and international artists, including digital and audio art. Recognized for its award-winning programs, the Gallery engages children through to adults in ongoing conversations that affect our lives and provides opportunities to interact with artists and the artistic process. The Gallery is located at 13750 88 Avenue in Surrey on the unceded territories of the Salish Peoples, including the q̓ic̓əy̓ (Katzie), q̓ʷɑ:n̓ƛ̓ən̓ (Kwantlen), and Semiahma (Semiahmoo) nations. Surrey Art Gallery gratefully acknowledges operating funding from the City of Surrey, Province of BC through BC Arts Council, Canada Council for the Arts, and the Surrey Art Gallery Association.