Our Mandate
We believe there is value to be discovered at the intersection of contemporary art and religious faith, and welcome visitors from all faith backgrounds (or none) to join us in exploring this overlap. By establishing art space, sacred space and community space in North-Central Edmonton, we offer beauty and voice to neighbourhood residents, and work for social justice in our city.
Our Programs
Bleeding Heart hosts an admission-free public gallery space. We welcome hundreds of guests each year to exhibitions, artist workshops, concerts, and community building events.
Exhibitions are juried annually by members of the Bleeding Heart team and independent artists. Our group shows and solo shows both feature emerging and professional artists.
The majority of funding for the Space comes from private donations, with event ticket sales, workshop fees and the occasional art sale making up the balance.
Our Manifesto
Art speaks. Stop and listen. Open yourself to questions, conversations and connections. Engage. Wrestle. Create in response to creation. Invite surprise and awe. Seek out beauty and wonder. Simple can be sacred. Laugh and eat and make and play. Learn from children. Open doors and include people. Find beauty in their story. Accept their failures; we are all bleeding. Forgive and be forgiven. Love is powerful, so risk it. Love in the face of fear. Love the wrong people. Seek; you find what you look for. Truth, beauty and redemption are just down the street so know your neighbourhood. Love local. Walk often. Say hi and make eye contact. Shop your streets. Gather together. Make a meal, take a class and tend your garden. Serve. You have a song so sing it well. Never settle. Find the freedom in discipline. Refine your craft. Learn and teach. Give and ask for excellence, then give and ask for grace. Keep listening.
Our Values
Our Manifesto grew out of six core values.
We will remain;
engaging | inclusive | redemptive
local | champions of artistic excellence | awestruck
Our History
After running as a pop-up gallery space since 2012, Bleeding Heart moved into its first permanent home on Alberta Avenue in November of 2014 (now home to the famous Green Onion Cake Man). Bleeding Heart changed locations in July of 2017, moving upstairs into a more performance-friendly venue.
While the shape of this new space was a great fit for Bleeding Heart’s programming, accessibility was an issue. After the 2-year lease was up, Bleeding Heart decided to give up the space and began a season of pop-up programming in collaboration with other neighbourhood arts organizations and businesses. This, fortunately, also meant that Bleeding Heart was well situated to promptly move its programming online when the Covid-19 pandemic hit Edmonton in early 2020.
In May 2022, after a couple years of offering online Artist Features, Creative Projects, and virtual events, Bleeding Heart opened up a brand new gallery space within the building of Lodgepole Highlands.
Bleeding Heart participates in Lodgepole Communitas, a grassroots social enterprise / social cohesion project operating in the neighbourhoods of Highlands and Alberta Avenue. Lodgepole oversees administrative and financial matters for Bleeding Heart and issues tax receipts for charitable donations.