Winnipeg Art Gallery to Reopen Next Week

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The Winnipeg Art Gallery will reopen to the public next week, after a green light on Wednesday from the Manitoba government to galleries and museums.

The gallery will be open May 5 and May 6 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. for frontline workers and their families only. Entry will be free and family activities will be held between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

Regular public hours will resume May 7 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

The gallery says new learning programs, including online and in-person studio classes and a variety of camps for kids could begin as early as mid-May.

Safety measures include social distancing protocols, hand sanitation and self-screening by staff and patrons

The gallery has been closed since March 14.

Meanwhile, other galleries in Winnipeg appear to be moving more slowly to organize logistics and meet government protocols outlined Wednesday.

The Winnipeg Free Press reports that the Association of Manitoba Museums was unaware of opening plans by any of its 200 members. 

""Our museums are really pleased in some ways, because we want to be open," executive director Monique Brandt said Thursday. "But they’re a little bit scared, because it’s a big responsibility to make sure everything is following the proper safety protocols."

Andrea Reichert, curator of the Manitoba Craft Museum and Library, which shares space with the Manitoba Craft Council at the C2 Centre for Craft, said the government's announcement came as a surprise.

"No one in the facility was prepared for it," she told the Winnipeg Free Press. "I didn’t think that museums and galleries would be that high on the list to reopen."

Source: Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg Free Press