Stanley Park
Stanley Park view
Visiting Vancouver was a lovely experience all around. One of the largest cities in the Pacific Northwest, it still felt small enough to see much of the city in the seven days we spent there. Catching up with ex-pat friends, as well as convening with Canadian artists I've only had the pleasure of collaborating with through the internet, it was nice to finally be in their presence and on their home-field.
Some particular highlights of my trip included visits to the incredible galleries and museums the city has to offer. A very striking presence of indigenous art, I admired this aspect of Vancouver and felt it was very impressive they offered free admission to people of First Nations. I left extremely inspired by Dana Claxton's exhibit at the Vancouver Art Gallery. An American indigenous artist, her work is an effort to reclaim her native identity through multi-disciplinary mediums. Her immersive video art piece of a Lakota ritual really provoked me. Overall a very beautifully curated selection that month (November 2018) at the Vancouver Art Gallery, I was lucky to have caught those exhibits.
Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden in Chinatown, Vancouver
Neon by Paul Wong Projects
Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden
Visiting Chinatown in Vancouver also proved to be an interesting experience. The gardens at Dr. Sun Yat-Sen park were full of serenity in the early morning. On view was work by Vancouver artist, Paul Wong. His multi-media pieces included neon, as well as large photographic prints of sauce jars repurposing Chinese medicine, a reflection of Sino-diaspora living in the West.
I was so inspired by Dana Claxton's work, the work of Paul Wong, and the efforts of the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia; in the coming months, I will be documenting a new project that I am creating on reclaiming culture.
Nude beach at UBC
UBC beach
University of British Columbia grounds
Capilano, BC
35mm Photographs taken in Vancouver, BC (2018)