Exciting partnerships bring community to Teichert Gallery
By Carol Kehoe
On October 17, Teichert Gallery will be a part of Nocturne: Embodied City, an art-at-night public festival with a new theme annually.
“This night is ideal for Teichert,” says Executive Director Andrea Smith. “We open the gallery to visitors between 6 pm and 12 am and have them create a work of art onsite.” Last year, upwards of 200 people created a unique string sculpture. This year, they will build a miniature city with wooden forms, many of them on loan from the talented Toymaker of Lunenburg, which crafts sustainable wooden toys and games in Nova Scotia.
The festival began in 2008 when representatives of art galleries and cultural institutions were interested in provoking broader public interest in the visual arts sector. Looking at ‘Nuit Blanche’ events and other nighttime-based models taking place within Canada, Nocturne Art at Night Society (Nocturne) was formed and today gives voice and agency to the local arts community by facilitating collaborations and exhibition opportunities.
Nocturne is just one of the many community organizations Teichert Gallery works with to broaden its reach and contribute to a robust arts community. We’ve partnered with the Downtown Halifax Business Commission March is for Music Program to present musical guests like Sam Wentzell and Cursed Arrows, and worked with other galleries as part of seasonal art walks. “We especially enjoyed supporting Halifax Art Map,” Andrea says. “We were thrilled to hold special exhibitions for Art Map artists to coincide with walks.”
A significant event and partnership took place in September 2025 when Teichert was the host gallery for the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour (CSPWC) 100th anniversary exhibition. This annual exhibition recognizes, encourages, and nurtures excellence of work in the medium of watercolour, and has been organized since CSPWC’s inception in 1925.
“We have so many wonderful Nova Scotia watercolour painters in our collection already,” says Andrea, “so being selected to present 40+ new works from painters across Canada and the world is a real honour.” The three-week exhibition saw upwards of 500 people visit the gallery, with support provided by Advocate Media and Advocate Printing. “The opening reception was attended by local dignitaries, artists and art enthusiasts, it was an exciting and energizing event.”
Earlier this summer, we partnered with Ocean Week Halifax and hosted live painting demonstrations with Anne and Edward Wedler accompanied by the water-themed music of acoustic guitarist Vladimir Sitnikov. Many guests were attending the gallery for the first time, excited by the opportunity to watch the artists create their work in real time.
In July, we were proud to support Pride Month for the first time with a special exhibition of work by LGBTQ+ artists, and in February we invited Black artists to exhibit their work in sitting with It, for Black History Month. Working with our first guest curator Nina-Simone Kellman was an enriching experience.
Of course, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia is our premier partner: over 50 years, we’ve been able to contribute to the purchase of 105 pieces of art for the collection, raising close to $1million dollars. There wouldn’t be Teichert Gallery if there wasn’t the AGNS: members of the Art Sales and Rental Society are glad to volunteer their time and energy so they can support our provincial art institution’s mission “to seek and present vital, engaging contemporary art globally, applying a modern lens to tradition that addresses key issues and sparks new perspectives.”
Carol Kehoe has been an ASAR volunteer since October 2024 and is currently Chair of the Board of Directors.