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Last week, we were invited to the Vancouver installment of the BOMBAY SAPPHIRE® Artisan Series at Windsor Gallery in Vancouver’s Mount Pleasant district.

The Artisan Series is an annual search to discover the best emerging visual artists from North America. Vancouver served as the premiere stop on the tour.

The search is now in its eighth year, with new partner Artsy, an online resource for art collecting and education. This partnership will help provide emerging artists with a powerful platform to share their work with more curators, collectors and art enthusiasts than ever before.

[Andre Guichard of BOMBAY SAPPHIRE® Artisan Series and Winsor Gallery announcing the chosen Vancouver finalist]

Every year, artists submit a photo of their artwork to BOMBAY SAPPHIRE® online. Across cities in North America, finalists are chosen to exhibit at local art gallery events across the U.S. and Canada to compete for the opportunity to showcase their work at SCOPE Miami Beach, one of the largest global art fairs in the world. This prestigious event draws the world’s top art critics and buyers.

[Full house at Windsor Gallery]

Since its inception in 2010, the Artisan Series has received over 35,000 submissions from inspired artists across North America and has precipitated the sale of artwork to musicians, collectors and film moguls – a testament to the exceptional caliber of talent receiving exposure from this annual emerging arts competition.

At the front door, we were signed in and given a small package containing coloured “emotion” tiles.

Each guest was invited to share emotions through the coloured tiles when an eye-catching piece attracted their attention.

Throughout the night, we all enjoyed a variety of cocktails featuring Bombay Sapphire Gin, Bombay Sapphire Gin East and Star of Bombay Sapphire Gin while admiring the pieces by emerging local talent.

[Pouring prosecco for the Pop Art 75 Cocktail]

[Pop Art 75 Cocktail featuring Star of Bombay Gin, lemon juice, simple syrup and cantaloupe melon juice finished off with prosecco, basil leaf and lemon zest garnish]

[A simple Mule cocktail featuring Bombay Sapphire Gin, fresh lime juice and Fever Tree ginger beer]

[Floating away to the Caribbean with the Muse cocktail – pictured in centre- featuring Bombay Gin East, fresh lime juice, orgeat syrup, orange bitters and pineapple juice]

From over 800 entries in Vancouver, 17 were selected as finalists for this evening. Among the finalists, these were some of the pieces that caught our eye.

[The fun and whimsical inky colours of Whisky Denim by Jon Shaw]

[An ode to “sleeping with the fishes?” Deep by Sandra Lamb]

[Downtown Between Meetings by Joanne Hastie]

[Junk Meadow by Coris Aeven]

Midway through the night, Andre of BOMBAY SAPPHIRE® Artisan Series announced Vancouver winner Vanessa Lam.

[More gorgeous art to admire]

Vanessa’s contemporary abstract acrylic and ink piece, Uncloacked, won the emerging artist a trip to Miami to showcase her work at SCOPE and attend an Artsy VIP party where Artsy’s top curators will select the final winner of the BOMBAY SAPPHIRE® Artisan Series this December.

[Congratulations to Vancouver winner Vanessa Lam!]

Vote for your favourite North American piece online amongst the 16 finalists.

The grand prize winner, chosen during the Miami-based event, will receive a cash stipend and a collab with Artsy to create a public installation in New York City, set to debut sometime between April and August 2018.

[Vanessa’s winning piece, Uncloacked]

Both second- and People’s Choice winners will each receive a cash stipend to create a solo exhibit at a gallery in their city. All three winners will receive custom artist pages on Artsy.

Photos by Yumi Ang.

About Our Contributor Yumi Ang

Yumi Ang is a Vancouver-born and raised multidisciplinary, creative professional. Curiosity for innovation drives her to branding, advertising and marketing. Outside her design work, Yumi stays inspired by discovering the latest gift ideas through events and new adventures. On Twitter @yumi_ang.