WHISTLER, BC--(Marketwired - November 10, 2017) - Vancouver business executive and philanthropist Tom Gautreau and his wife Teresa have donated $2-million to the Audain Art Museum Foundation in support of the Museum's permanent endowment fund.

"Teresa and I are happy to support the Audain Art Museum because we believe in the importance of British Columbia art and can see that the museum is doing a terrific job showcasing it to the rest of Canada and to the world," says Tom Gautreau.

"We are very grateful for this gift which brings the endowment fund to $24-million," says Michael Audain, Founder of the Museum and Chairman of its Foundation. "Originally, we had a goal of raising $25-million, but based on the support received to date from people who love art and love Whistler, we have decided to double our target to $50-million. These funds will allow us to broaden our programs and grow our audience."

In recognition of this significant gift, the special exhibition galleries on the lower level of the Audain Art Museum will be identified as the Tom and Teresa Gautreau Galleries.

On average, three special exhibitions a year move through these galleries and include past shows such as Masterworks from the Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Matisse Drawings, and Edward Burtynsky: The Scarred Earth. On November 11, 2017, Stone and Sky: Canada's Mountain Landscape opens in the Tom and Teresa Gautreau Galleries through February 26, 2018.

The Audain Art Museum Foundation was established in 2015 with the purpose of creating a permanent endowment fund to ensure the long term financial stability of the Museum. It is already one of the largest endowment funds attached to a Canadian art museum.

AUDAIN ART MUSEUM FOUNDATION

Background:

The Audain Art Museum designed by Patkau Architects is located on Blackcomb Way adjacent to Whistler Village.

Opened in March 2016, the Museum houses a large portion of the art collection that Michael Audain and his wife Yoshiko Karasawa amassed over the past 40 years. Their world-class Northwest Coast art collection is on permanent display, plus there are galleries for special exhibitions of Canadian and international art. Open year round, the Museum is an attraction for Whistler's 12,000 residents and the three million annual visitors to the four-season mountain resort.

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