fortune gallery is home to art exhibitions, private events, and community gatherings. We strive to positively contribute to and reflect the conversations and culture around us, while also recognizing the incredible history that occurred well before we arrived. We acknowledge and respect the lekwungen peoples on whose unceded territory the gallery stands.

Gallery History

Nestled in the heart of the oldest Chinatown in Canada, fortune gallery established itself as a focal point of the Victoria arts community in 2007. The making of this unique space began in the late 1800s when the building was constructed to serve as a general store. As records of ownership in Chinatown are hard to find and harder still to interpret, the building has relied on a collection of personal memories to carry its story through the years.

The centuries-old bricks of the gallery are imbued with these memories; narratives of oppression, of reclaimed culture, and of tumultuous living within the “Forbidden City.” Summed up by the discovery of a handgun in a recent renovation of the gallery—its 125-year-old barrel wrapped in old newspaper and gambling tabs—life in Chinatown was set against a backdrop of gambling dens, opium lairs, brothels, and sputtering woks of fresh noodles. Despite the hardships inherent in an immigrant enclave, Chinese Canadians carved a legacy of refuge, dignity, expression, and community into a few city blocks; tenets that would similarly draw struggling artists in the mid-1900s. 

Today, the gallery door is still open to former residents, their stories and the space colliding in a continuation of history; of the vibrant, bustling Chinatown streets they grew up on, and the incredible humanity of its residents, then and now.

The multi award-winning fortune gallery is proud to call the diverse, quirky, and historic neighbourhood its home, offering artists of all modalities a space to share their creativity, spark dialogue, and incite inspiration for anyone walking within the gallery walls.

“I feel blessed to be a part of this community where I can indulge my philanthropic soul by hosting exhibits that are thought provoking and inspiring to others. I love the location and the people that I meet and work with on projects”

— Alison Trembath, owner of fortune gallery

Community Support


Surfrider Foundation

AIDS Victoria

Federation of Canadian Artists

 

Land Trust Alliance BC

Art School of Victoria

Ancient Forest Alliance

 

Elephant Earth Initiative

Sealives Initiative

Charity: WATER

 

Suddenly Dance Theatre

Inter-Cultural Association