Collector and philanthropist Michael Audain
BC philanthropist and collector Michael Audain has gifted $5 million to the Emily Carr University of Art and Design, creating the largest individual gift ever received by the university.
The university, in turn, has committed to creating what it calls the Audain School of Visual Arts, which will be part of the new ECUAD Great Northern Way Campus and include the Faculty of Visual Art and Material Practice as well as house the painting, ceramics, print media, illustration, photography, sculpture and drawing areas.
“Emily Carr University of Art and Design is indisputably the best art school in Canada and a major reason why Vancouver has become such an internationally important centre for visual arts over the last few decades,” Audain said in a release. “With this grant from our family foundation [the donation was made through the Audain Foundation for Visual Arts], I’m helping to kick off Emily Carr University’s capital campaign. We hope that individuals and businesses quickly climb aboard with their support.”
ECUAD is currently in the midst of a capital campaign to raise funds for its new Great Northern Way Campus. CBC has reported that the new campus, due to open in July 2016, is estimated to cost $134 million. The provincial government has already committed $113 million to the project.
The $5 million gift is in addition to a commitment Audain made last year to establish a distinguished artist-in-residence program at ECUAD.
