WHO WE ARE
WHAT IS THE ART SHOP?
The Art Shop (TAS) is a platform that aims to bridge the gap between artists and collectors in an accessible way.
Our expertise spans curatorial direction, artist and project management, and long-term art strategies. With each project, we bridge the vision of artists with the goals of our clients, ensuring outcomes that enrich place, engage community, and elevate diverse voices.
Collaboration is at the core of our work. We believe art should be accessible and inclusive, experienced beyond traditional gallery walls, and reflective of the people and environments it exists within.
Evolving from our beginnings as an vibrant pop up and exhibition space for emerging artists, TAS continues to champion experimental and exciting voices while expanding our role in connecting artists, clients, and communities through thoughtful advisory projects.
OUR STORY
TAS started from a desire to establish a new way for people to relate to contemporary art. Galleries today are places where most people feel intimidated and excluded by. The relationship between artists and people is obstructed as art dealers create a defining distance with a distinct manner of exhibition. For artists to be supported, their artworks need to be sold, and for people to buy art, they have to understand it, relate to it, and desire it.
Everyone should be made to feel welcome, respected and understood. Contemporary art should be accessible to everyone.
The art world is constituted by sectors that promote art as an unreachable commodity and luxury, either by classifying art within a celebrity culture through the mystification of artists, or by prestigious academic claims that further sepparate art and people. TAS hopes to reverse the order in which art has become unattainable by presenting artists that create work for the people, creating a opportunities of no pretense. Focusing on creating a local impact, working with local artists and providing the people of Vancouver all that TAS has to offer.
our founder
Mariana Rivera (she/her) has worked in the art world for more than 15 years and has always been in the search for the best way to support artists, recognizing a need for a new kind of relationship between people and art.
Her experience in multiple artworld sectors, from commercial galleries, to cultural institutions, and public and private art consultancies, has influenced her desire to create a supportive and novel environment for artists and the public.
