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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:
Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;color:black;mso-themecolor:text1"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></span><span style="color: black;">FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE</span></p>
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<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;
color:black;mso-themecolor:text1">VPAG Starts the Year With Four New Exhibitions.
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;color:black;
mso-themecolor:text1">The Vernon Public Art Gallery is excited to showcase four new exhibitions to the public of Greater Vernon. Heather Passmore, Mat Glenn, Kama? Creative
 Aboriginal Arts Collective, and Wanda Lock have their works displayed in the Gallery.
<span style="mso-spacerun:yes">&nbsp;</span>Their exhibitions will be exhibited from January 9<sup>th</sup> until March 4<sup>th</sup>, 2020, with an opening reception on January 16<sup>th</sup>.
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<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:
Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">January 9<sup>th</sup>, 2020 – Vernon, BC:
</span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:
minor-latin">The Vernon Public Art Gallery is excited to start off 2020 with four powerful new exhibitions. In the Topham Brown Gallery, is the exhibition
<i>The Year We Disappeared, by</i> Wanda Lock. Her exhibition features works varying in size and method, which look into Wanda’s own life experiences. In the Caroline Galbraith Gallery is Heather Passmore’s exhibition
<i>Roman Charity</i>, a collection of large screen prints of mothers covering their faces while nursing, which explores the societal stigma surrounding breastfeeding in public.<span style="color:black;mso-themecolor:text1"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes">&nbsp;
</span>Mat Glenn, a recent graduate from the University of British Columbia Okanagan, is featured in the Up-front Gallery. His exhibition
<i>Fear Frequency </i>features sculptures, which explore the idea of human and non-human hybridity. Kama? Creative Aboriginal Arts Collective, is a group of diverse First Nations artists working in a variety of media. Their 2020 exhibition titled MMIW addresses
 the significant themes surrounding the poignant circumstances in cases of murdered and missing indigenous women. These four exhibitions address significant issues and ideas, creating an open-minded and forward-looking space at the gallery.
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;color:black;
mso-themecolor:text1"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">“The VPAG cannot wait for the public to experience the inspiring artwork that has just arrived. These upcoming exhibitions bri<span style="color:black;mso-themecolor:
text1">ng significant
 an</span>d thought-provoking content to the gallery and challenge the viewer to look deeper.” Executive Director, Dauna Kennedy.</span></p>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;color:red"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></span></p>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Stop by the VPAG to experience thes<span style="color:black;mso-themecolor:text1">e significant e</span>xhibitions. Admission is by donation.</span></p>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;
color:red"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></span></p>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">The <span style="background:white">
Vernon Public Art Gallery is a not-for-profit, charitable organization committed to fostering an appreciation of the visual arts for all members of the community.</span> As
<span style="background:white">the oldest art gallery in the Interior Region of British Columbia, the VPAG has been an important part of cultural tourism, and a centre for educational and cultural activities in the Okanagan for 60&#43; years. The VPAG is constantly
 growing and is currently looking forward to its exciting transition into a larger facility at the new Cultural Centre in Vernon. We hope to consistently develop and increase our funds to allow us to promote visual arts in the broader community by presenting
 more quality exhibitions<span style="border:
none windowtext 1.0pt;mso-border-alt:none windowtext 0cm;padding:0cm"><a href="http://www.vernonpublicartgallery.com/projects/current-exhibitions/" target="_blank"><span style="color:windowtext; text-underline:
none">,</span></a></span></span>
 educational programs and annual community events.</span></p>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></span></p>
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text-align:center;line-height:normal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">~30~</span></p>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:
Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></span></p>
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<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Contact Info:</span></b></p>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">For quotes and information:<span style="mso-tab-count:4">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</span>General:</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 8pt; line-height: 107%; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;margin-bottom:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height:
normal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">Dauna Kennedy, Executive Director
<span style="mso-tab-count:3">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Carly Melvin, Communications
</span></p>
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<span style="color: rgb(5, 99, 193); text-decoration: underline"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin"><a href="mailto:dauna@vernonpublicartagallery.com">dauna@vernonpublicartagallery.com</a></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin"><span style="mso-tab-count:3">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
</span><span style="color: rgb(5, 99, 193); text-decoration: underline">communications@vernonpublicartgallery.com</span></span></p>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">250.545.3173
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:9.0pt; font-family:&quot;Century Gothic&quot;,sans-serif; color:#595959">Carly Melvin</span></p>
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