Chandra Kastern is the new director of operations at the Red Deer Museum + Art Gallery. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

hopes and dreams are to expand

Red Deer Museum + Art Gallery hires new eager director of operations

Mar 22, 2023 | 6:00 PM

There’s a new director of operations at the Red Deer Museum + Art Gallery (MAG).

Chandra Kastern took over this week, filling a position that had been vacant for several months. Her start comes as the MAG is celebrating its 50th year.

READ MORE: Big things to come as Red Deer Museum + Art Gallery celebrates 50 years

Kastern, who has credentials in non-profit management, has among her various goals, one big one.

“I want every person in Red Deer to have been through our doors, and for it to be something everyone in the community is familiar with,” she says.

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“Our hopes and dreams are to expand our space. We don’t have plans set in stone, but however it eventually looks, we’d love to be able to offer more than one day camp at a time, and host bigger exhibits. It’s great we inherited the archive space in recent years, but that was needed just for our overall collection.”

A big part of getting every Red Deerian in the door is the free membership currently being offered for the MAG’s aforementioned 50th year.

Anyone can sign up for a free membership here.

There’s also a need for as many volunteers as possible, Kastern shares.

The MAG’s Annual General Meeting is happening in May if anyone is interested in learning more that way. Otherwise, prospective volunteers can contact the MAG.

Kastern encourages citizens to take advantage of recurring activities such as Reel Movie Mondays at Carnival Cinemas, and exhibit launches like the one coming up on March 30.

That day from 6-8 p.m., the MAG, in collaboration with the Red Deer Polytechnic Visual Arts and Culinary Arts programs, will officially launch ‘Long Live‘ with a free and open to the public event.

Thanks to a sneak peek rdnewsNOW received this week, we can tell you the work to be found within this exhibit is diverse and stellar.

“When I think about Red Deer and its arts and culture, the MAG comes to mind first. I believe it’s a cornerstone for that community. People will hopefully, if they don’t already, begin to look to the MAG more when it comes to arts and culture,” Kastern says.

“It’s also a great gathering place. Every time I go through the Remarkable Red Deer exhibit, I find something new I havent noticed; if you’ve been here a million times, there’s always something new.”

To learn more about the Red Deer Museum + Art Gallery (4525 47A Avenue), visit reddeermuseum.com.