Robert Young, “A Man He Got a Nest,” etching (courtesy of Canadian Art Preservation Foundation)
How do artists go about preserving a lifetime collection of work?
It’s a question impacting aging professional creatives around the world, including long-time British Columbia artist Kristin Krimmel.
Krimmel was part of a talk entitled Art Preservation, hosted by artist Pnina Granirer at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver in April 2025.
“Artwork by important artists can be sitting in expensive storage for years or sold at a yard sale,” Krimmel told the audience.
“Children of artists aren’t necessarily interested. Galleries can be indifferent and auction houses uncertain."
After pondering this dilemma, Krimmel and her husband Hans Christian Behm, a retired builder and designer, established the Canadian Art Preservation Foundation (CAPF) four years ago. The non-profit organization is dedicated to preserving artists’ accomplishments for future generations. Along with artwork, they accept journals, notes, letters, exhibition catalogues and other documents contributing to a portrait of the artist.
“Our immediate vision is keeping the artwork safe,” Krimmel said.
As for a long-term vision, the foundation is pursuing funding to purchase a larger space for the collection to be processed, stored and exhibited.
Sally Michener, “Woman on a Shelf,” ceramic, wood, glass (courtesy of Canadian Art Preservation Foundation)
“Art defines our culture, but it has been diminished in schools and should be part of our daily life," she said.
“Creativity is essential to our survival.”
So far the foundation has acquired more than 300 pieces, a collection comprised of paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures, ceramics, and architectural models by more than 100 artists. Many pieces were donated. Others were rescued at garage sales, thrift shops and auctions.
“These artists are important to the province’s art history,” Krimmel said.
Acquisitions are curated by a five-member volunteer board comprised of Krimmel and her husband Behm, along with Penticton Art Gallery Director Paul Crawford; Marcus Bowcott, a Vancouver-based artist and art educator; and Marlies Guenther, a foundation staff member.
Artists who submit their work sign a donor gift agreement and receive a tax receipt that ensures a fair market value. The foundation will also document relevant details about the artist’s work and life.
Krimmel suggests an artist may want to donate a set amount of work every year. “It could be 10 or 20 pieces of art per year,” she said.
“The art donated is looked after. It is shown on our website and available for viewing by the public at no cost.”
Donald Pentz, “Ancient Landscape,” acrylic on canvas (courtesy of Canadian Art Preservation Foundation)
Two paid staff are tasked with office work, creating a newsletter, an artist’s blog and the donor gift agreement. A professional web designer has also volunteered to create the organization’s website.
Future plans include hiring an executive director. “Our vision is small but growing,” Krimmel said.
Krimmel has about a thousand pieces of her own paintings and drawings. Her creative journey began in France where she earned a diploma at Ecole de Beaux Arts de Reims in 1980. After returning to Vancouver, she taught art, created and exhibited her own work and held an administrative career with the federal government. In 2014, Krimmel had a retrospective show entitled 40 Years at the Maple Ridge Art Gallery (since renamed the ACT Art Gallery) in Maple Ridge, BC.
Fellow panelist, Vancouver printmaker and cultural archivist Gary Sim described his ambitious online BC artist database, Sim Publishing. Established in the 1990s, the website lists more than 20,800 BC artists, dating from the 1800s to the present day.
Sim also highlighted the Unheralded Artists of BC biographical series by Mother Tongue Publishing. The 10 books, published from 2008 to 2017, depict the art and life of 14 lesser-known twentieth century BC artists.
“Others have tried to preserve art work, including the Coast Art Trust Society which was set up in 2005,” he said. The society folded four years later, he said, and its collection of BC art was acquired by the University of Victoria.
“Eighty percent of Canadian art disappears,” Behm said.
“Where does it go? The more we nurture art, the healthier we are. Canada has produced so much fantastic art.”
While the foundation holds art by prominent artists, they seek the work of all Canadian artists.
And Behm hopes more donors will step forward and help build their vision.
“We need people to come together and realize the importance of saving art,” Behm said.
“Meaningful art is worth looking at more than once.” ■
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