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Monday 12pm - 4pm Tuesday 12pm - 4pm Wednesday 12pm - 4pm Thursday 12pm - 4pm Friday 12pm - 10pm Saturday 10am - 5pm Sunday 12pm - 5pm

Varley Art Gallery

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Varley Art Gallery

The Varley Art Gallery of Markham is a vital cultural hub for artists and diverse communities. Free Admission. Varley died in 1969. Unionville.

The Varley Art Gallery of Markham features frequently changing exhibitions from the permanent collection as well as historical contemporary exhibitions drawn from local, national and international sources. New ways of seeing and appreciating art are enhanced through a broad range of dynamic hands-on art-related activities, including group tours, school programs, studio art classes, workshops and l

ectures, and family activities, designed to appeal to audiences of all ages and interests. The gallery encompasses the historic Kathleen McKay house dating from the 1840's (now the McKay Art Centre) that became the home of Frederick Horsman Varley for the last 12 years of his life. Through a generous gift by Kathleen to the Town of Markham, the Town and a group of dedicated volunteers undertook to build a 15,000 sq' gallery just doors away from the historic house on Main St. Today historic village of Unionville and the Varley Art Gallery represent the second most popular tourist attraction in York Region while serving the visual arts needs and interests for the people of Markham.

06/20/2026

💜Become part of the Varley volunteer family this summer!

We are seeking Summer Camp Program Assistants (Ages 14+) to support our summer art camps for children ages 4 to 12. Working alongside camp instructors, Program Assistants help facilitate hands-on art activities, support daily camp operations, and contribute to a positive and creative learning environment.

This is a great opportunity to gain experience in arts education, develop leadership and communication skills, and inspire young artists through creativity and exploration. High school students seeking community involvement hours are encouraged to apply.

We are also recruiting Event Assistants (Ages 14+) to support exhibition openings, festivals, and special events throughout the year.

To learn more and apply, create a profile at markham.ca/volunteering and select Culture Department to view current opportunities.

06/17/2026

👥Become part of the Varley volunteer family this summer!

We are seeking 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗖𝗮𝗺𝗽 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 (Ages 14+) to support our summer art camps for children ages 4 to 12. Working alongside camp instructors, Program Assistants help facilitate hands-on art activities, support daily camp operations, and contribute to a positive and creative learning environment.

This is a great opportunity to gain experience in arts education, develop leadership and communication skills, and inspire young artists through creativity and exploration. High school students seeking community involvement hours are encouraged to apply.

We are also recruiting 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 (Ages 14+) to support exhibition openings, festivals, and special events throughout the year.

To learn more and apply, create a profile at markham.ca/volunteering and select Culture Department to view current opportunities.

06/11/2026

Join us this Sunday at 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲: 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗮 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺, an exhibit of four architectural pavilions created by the University of Toronto’s Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design students, instructor Humbi Song, Assistant Professor and Emerging Architect Fellow, and Sadi Wali, teaching assistant.

A facade is never just a surface: it is the result of flows of energy, material, labour and information. It encodes within it the processes that fabricate it, and the wider infrastructures of technology, ecology, and human-machine interaction it draws on.

Reflecting back on its own development, each pavilion turns a hidden system of creation into something you can walk through and inhabit - from the human-machine choreography of machine cutting and folding, to the energy, water and land consumed by data centres in the use of computational tools and AI. The result is a set of structures that treat technology as both a social and a spatial condition and make visible the infrastructure usually kept out of sight. Visitors are welcome to move through the work and talk with students who made it.

On view this Sunday only at the Varley Art Gallery.

𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲: 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗮 𝗦𝘂𝗿𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺
📆 Sunday, June 14
🕜 1 to 4 PM
📍Outdoor courtyard and Deacon Community Room, the Varley Art Gallery of Markham

Co-produced and co-presented by John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design and Markham Public Art, with the support of the Varley Art Gallery of Markham.

To learn more, visit www.daniels.utoronto.ca/responsive-architecture
—

| Image Credits |
(1) Anna Geng
(2) Jack Simon
(3) Installation view of 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗭𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀 (2025) by Claire Yuen, Eda Sarac Sarac, and Emma Chen, presented as part of a previous student open house at Industrial Arts in Markham, July 26, 2025.

06/11/2026

🐾 This weekend, the Varley is joining Barkham Festival 2026!

Visit our booth and create your own Wish Dog Charm, a free, all-ages art activity inspired by our four-legged companions. Design a keepsake charm and make a wish for your furry friend to take home.

We can't wait to meet you—and your furry friends!

𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗵𝗮𝗺 𝗙𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝗹 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲
📍 Markham Museum
🗓️ June 13 to 14, 2026
🕙 11 AM to 6 PM

| About Barkham Festival 2026 |

York Region's largest dog-festival is back, with 25 acres of space to explore at Markham Museum. With over 100+ vendors, food trucks, games, and giveaways - this is the most EPIC dog-friendly event of the year that brings in 8,000 guests and runs one-weekend only! Rain or shine, be prepared to have the time of your life!

Admission to Barkham Festival required. Learn more at markhamdogalliance.com/barkham.
—
Markham Dog Alliance

06/10/2026

🏞️ This Saturday, the Markham Group of Artists , in partnership with the Varley Art Gallery, presents the Unionville Plein Air Festival, a one-day celebration of outdoor painting in the heart of Main Street Unionville.

Throughout the day, artists will create original works on site, capturing the character of the historic village and its surrounding landscapes. In the evening, visitors are invited to the Varley Art Gallery to view the completed works, meet the artists, and attend a special exhibition and sale.

𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗲𝗶𝗻 𝗔𝗶𝗿 𝗙𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝗹
🗓️ Saturday, June 13, 2026

🕙 9 AM to 2 PM | Watch 60 artists paint en plein air across Unionville
🕙 11 AM to 2 PM | Live model session in the gardens of the McKay Art Centre
🕠 5:30 to 8 PM | Art Show & Sale at the Varley Art Gallery
🕡 6:30 PM | Awards ceremony

To learn more, visit markhamartists.org
—
Images: Markham Group of Artists

06/06/2026

is back for the summer.

This edition takes a closer look at Scott Sawtell’s (.sawtell) 𝗣𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗼 (𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳𝗳) (2019) and offers insight into the practice of this exhibiting artist.

Join us next Wednesday for a free online talk, where Sawtell will discuss his creative process and respond to questions from the audience. To learn more or register, visit VarleyArtGallery.ca.

| About the Artist |

In his painting practice, Sawtell blends chaotic energy with playful, story driven imagery. On the surface of his canvases, mysterious scenes seem to materialize fully formed: a creature rises from a fiery swamp, its disembodied limbs jutting from discarded machinery; an arch hovers between the trunks of an upside down forest, a toothless grin anchoring the landscape. Elsewhere, bright flora distracts from otherworldly terrains populated by fallen knights and fractured superheroes.

Yet none of these scenarios are planned. They emerge through the act of painting itself, as Sawtell lets his subconscious guide the first brush marks. He gives himself over to the creative process, relinquishing order and balance in favour of a more disorganized, intuitive way of working. He often rotates his canvases, painting from multiple angles to loosen his application and avoid falling into predetermined narratives. From this initial abstraction, lines and colours begin to cohere, forming shapes that he gradually manipulates into recognizable figures. Still, the work resists strict categorization, allowing figuration, landscape, and abstraction to coexist.

Sawtell's imagery draws on narrative traditions and visual storytelling, referencing popular culture, science fiction, and animation, among other influences. Running beneath these scenes is an undercurrent of fear and anxiety shaped by today's political and economic climates. There's an uneasiness to his work, a foreboding that you can't quite place. As he navigates the world while raising two children, painting becomes a way to process uncertainty—a practice that helps him make sense of things and supports his own mental well being.

06/05/2026

💻Next Wednesday, June 10, take your lunch break with us and join a free online talk with Scott Sawtell, featured artist from the Varley’s current exhibition 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝘀 𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿.

This session offers insight into Sawtell’s creative process and current work.

𝗟𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝘁𝘁 𝗦𝗮𝘄𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹
🗓️Wednesday, June 10, 2026
🕙12:30 to 1:30 PM
💰Free | Online | Registration link in bio

| About the Artist |

Scott Sawtell is a painter based in the Greater Toronto Area who has exhibited his work for over 25 years across Canada and the United States. Working from his suburban studio, his practice explores contemporary painting through a sustained and dedicated studio approach. Sawtell holds an MFA from the University of Waterloo and is a graduate of the Ontario College of Art and Design. Alongside his studio practice, he has taught at Georgian College, OCAD University, and Brock University, and has curated exhibitions for institutions including the Town of Newmarket, the City of Kitchener, Oakville Galleries, and Humber College. He is currently focused on the continued development of his painting practice.

| About the Exhibition |

The artists in this exhibition work within states of in‑betweenness, using painting to assemble the memories, relationships, and events that shape their identities. Through layered processes and intuitive construction, they build worlds that hold them together—worlds offering coherence amid shifting selves and unstable histories. Together, their practices unfold within the shared context of living and working in York Region, a place shaped by cultural plurality and continual transformation.

To learn more or register, visit VarleyArtGallery.ca
—
Image: Scott Sawtell, 𝗣𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗼 (𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳𝗳) (detail), 2019, oil on canvas, 121.9 cm x 151.1 cm. Courtesy of the artist.

Varley-McKay Art Foundation of Markham , TD , Ontario Arts Council - Conseil des arts de l'Ontario , Ontario Government

06/04/2026

🎪 Visit the Varley during the Unionville Festival (Main Street Unionville ) to explore our current exhibitions and take part in hands-on art-making for all ages.

Inspired by our 2026 Summer Exhibitions, the activity invites families and visitors to experiment with colour, materials, and creative expression through their own artwork.

Admission is free!

| Unionville Festival |

🗓️ Saturday and Sunday, June 6 and 7, 2026
🕙 10 AM to 4 PM
💰 Free | Registration not required

To learn more, visit VarleyArtGallery.ca.
—
Images: Louis Li Photography

06/04/2026

🏖️ We know summer calls for longer days with art.

That’s why this season, we’re extending our public hours, giving you more time to spend with art.

| Summer Hours |

Monday
• June 29 to September 7 | 12 to 4 PM
• Other Mondays | Closed

Tuesday to Thursday
• 12 to 4 PM

Friday
• June 5 to September 4 | 12 to 8 PM
• Other Fridays | 12 to 4 PM

Saturday and Sunday
• 10 AM to 5 PM

Image: F. H. Varley, 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗦𝗰𝗲𝗻𝗲 (detail), 1938. Oil on wood, 30 cm x 38 cm. Collection of the Varley Art Gallery of Markham. Gift of the Estate of Kathleen Gormley McKay, 1996.

🖼️ This work is currently on view in our Collections Gallery.

Varley-McKay Art Foundation of Markham , TD , Ontario Arts Council - Conseil des arts de l'Ontario , Ontario Government , City of Markham

06/03/2026

𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗘𝘅𝗵𝗶𝗯𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀
🖼️Featuring works by Par Nair (), Scott Sawtell (.sawtell), and Vicky Talwar (), Hayley Chi Hay Chiu (.chiu), and F. H. Varley
🖊️Curated by Anik Glaude ()
🗓️On view until September 7, 2026
💰Free admission

As the only publicly funded art gallery in Markham—and one of just three professional public galleries in York Region, providing support to local and emerging artists is a key part of the Varley’s role. This support is especially evident in our 2026 Summer Exhibitions, 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝘀 𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 and 𝗘𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁. The featured York Region artists are at varying stages of their careers, but common to all is interest in the medium of paint and utilizing it to reflect on issues of identity and self-care.

Join us for a series of free exhibition programs throughout the summer:

| Upcoming Exhibition Programs |

𝗟𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝘁𝘁 𝗦𝗮𝘄𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹
🗓️ Wednesday, June 10, 2026
💰 Free | Online | Zoom link provided upon registration

𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗘𝘅𝗵𝗶𝗯𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗚𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗧𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀
🗓️ July 1 to September 7, 2026
💰 Free | In-person | Drop-in

𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗗𝗮𝘆:
𝗣𝗼𝗲𝗺𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗿𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀
🗓️ Tuesday, July 7, 2026
💰 Free | In-person | Drop-in

𝗣𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗣𝗮𝗿 𝗡𝗮𝗶𝗿
🗓️ Saturday, July 18, 2026
💰 Free | In-person | Register on Eventbrite

𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁:
𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗿𝗼𝗽-𝗶𝗻 𝗔𝗿𝘁 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽
🗓️ Saturday, August 29, 2026
💰 Free | In-person | Drop-in

To learn more, visit VarleyArtGallery.ca
—
| Image Credits |
(1), (3) to (9) 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝘀 𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿, installation view, Varley Art Gallery of Markham, 2026. Photo: Toni Hafkenscheid
(2) 𝗘𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁, installation view, Varley Art Gallery of Markham, 2026. Photo: Toni Hafkenscheid
(10) 𝗦𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝘀𝘁, installation view, Varley Art Gallery of Markham, 2026. Photo: Toni Hafkenscheid

Varley-McKay Art Foundation of Markham , TD , Ontario Arts Council - Conseil des arts de l'Ontario , Ontario Government , City of Markham

Address

216 Main Street Unionville
Markham, ON
L3R2H1

Opening Hours

Monday	12pm - 4pm
Tuesday	12pm - 4pm
Wednesday	12pm - 4pm
Thursday	12pm - 4pm
Friday	12pm - 10pm
Saturday	10am - 5pm
Sunday	12pm - 5pm

Telephone

(905) 477-9511

Website

http://VarleyArtGallery.ca/

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