At a distance of 16.5 Mpc and with a gravitating mass of 4.2×10^14 solar masses, the Virgo Cluster is the dominant mass concentration in the local universe, the centre of the Local Supercluster, and the largest concentration of galaxies within ~35 Mpc. With thousands of member galaxies lying at a nearly common distance and spanning virtually all known morphological types, it has historically played a key role in studies of how galaxies form and evolve in dense environments. It is, without question, the most thoroughly studied cluster of galaxies in the universe, and remains a preferred target for a systematic survey of baryonic substructures in the low-redshift universe.

In this talk, I will discuss recent results from the Next Generation Virgo Cluster Survey (NGVS) — an optical imaging survey of the Virgo cluster carried out using MegaPrime at CFHT — and related spectroscopic follow-up programs. In particular, I will present: a census of Virgo galaxies down to 3×10^5 solar masses (at 50% completeness, a limit that has traditionally only been reached in the Local Group), their luminosity function and halo occupation fraction; structural scaling relations for baryonic structures spanning a factor 10 million in mass and the relation between “giant” and “dwarf” galaxies; and the role of environment in the evolution of compact galaxies and ultra compact dwarfs. The second further known object in the Solar System will be thrown in the mix!