Vancouver's new optical illusions art gallery will transport you to another reality (PHOTOS)
An interactive, three-dimensional art gallery has opened in Vancouver, and owners say it’s the first of its kind in Canada.
Dimensions Art Gallery opened in Vancouver’s Gastown neighbourhood on July 1. The gallery invites visitors to get lost in “endless reflections, become a giant, shrink down to miniature size, or just sit sideways on a wall.”
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The venue itself has 13 different paintings. Each painting was created by a different artist, many of whom participated in the Vancouver Mural Festival’s #MakeArtWhileApart initiative, which saw boarded-up storefronts around Downtown Vancouver become transformed into murals.
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In total, the gallery has three different rooms to visit. Darryl Lim, who works at Dimensions Art Gallery, tells Daily Hive that each room took several months to complete and that each painting was an approximately two-month-long process.
“We were planning on launching the gallery for about six months,” he says. “It took four months to construct and to put together but the pandemic made us unable to go into the gallery to work.”
And while the gallery is now open to the public, they’ve implemented a number of health and safety measures. Only a total of 12 people are allowed into the gallery at a time and visitors are advised to book in advance.
Lim says that staff will ensure that physical distancing is respected and masks and sanitizers are available to all customers.
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Exhibits include a “right-side-up” room, which gives the illusion of being stuck to the side of a wall, as well as an Ames room, a distorted room that creates the illusion of being shrunk.
Other attractions include an infinity room, a Super Mario-themed room, and plenty of photo-worthy optical illusions.
Naturally, food and drink aren’t allowed near the paintings; otherwise, guests are encouraged to pose however they like.
Dimensions Art Gallery
Address: 432 West Hastings Street, Vancouver
Phone: 604-558-4332