Unsavoury Witness - Alejandro A. Barbosa

I remember when Aaron Webster was murdered. Back in the 90s, the story was all over the news. He was a gay man who was hunted down in the trails of Stanley Park where gay men were known to go cruising. He was beaten to death with baseball bats by 3 people, one charged as a minor, and the other two - Ryan Cran and Danny Rao, as adults. 

"Unsavoury Witness is a photo-based installation that includes laser-engraved photographs, photographic murals, intermedia, print media, and court transcripts from the Supreme Court of British Columbia on the 2001 murder of Aaron Webster in Stanley Park. This immersive exhibition foregrounds homophobia’s intimate connections with public spaces, institutionalised systems, societal responses, queer bodies, and desire."

Register for your free ticket to the opening night reception at the SUM Gallery on Wed. April 16 at 6pm.

The exhibit runs from April 16 until June 6 at the SUM Gallery . 

Mirrors art exhibit

Come by this evening 6-9pm for the opening night reception of the latest art exhibit at the Queer Arts Festival's Sum Gallery in Chinatown! 

Register here for your free ticket! 

"Mirrors presents a series of watercolour nudes created by Michael Morris during his Berlin residency in the 1980s. Unique in Morris’ predominantly abstract oeuvre, these paintings depict hustlers, artists, and friends, many of them posing in front of a mirror, so that their form could be captured from different angles. Some three dozen nudes, none of which have ever been exhibited publicly, are presented alongside six newly commissioned paintings — “reflections” on Morris’ work — by West Moberly First Nations artist Dion Smith-Dokkie."

Mirrors is on until April 4 at the Sum Gallery. 

Eastside Culture Crawl

 Happy November everyone! Did you make it through Halloween season alright? Thanksgiving Dinner anxiety is over and done with!  

This month brings us the annual Eastside Culture Crawl, which is ALWAYS a fun time, no matter where you go! 

Apparently, this year "is one of the biggest years ever, with more than 500 registered artists, including nearly 100 artists participating for the first time. Artists will be showcasing a variety of artistic mediums, from jewelery, sculpture, and pottery, to painting, textiles, photography, furniture, and so much more!" 

Photo-credit-Joshua-Wright: Georgia-Art-Studios - 

Provided-by-Eastside-Arts-Society_One-Time-Use

Annette-Nieukerk_Photo-credit-Joshua-Wright

Provided-by-Eastside-Arts-Society_One-Time-Use

Yaron-Bareli_Photo-credit-Joshua-Wright

Provided-by-Eastside-Arts-Society_One-Time-Use

And the best part is that all of this is FREE to go visit and see! 

Don't miss out on the Eastside Culture Crawl from November 14 - 17 ! 

Create! East Side Arts Festival

"Eastside Arts Society (EAS) presents the 4th edition of its newly expanded, immersive summer arts event, CREATE! Eastside Arts Festival, at various Eastside Arts District (EAD) studios, breweries, and performance venues, in addition to its traditional all-day outdoor festivities at Strathcona Park from July 22-28, 2024. Celebrating the diversity of performing and visual arts in Vancouver’s Eastside, CREATE! offers arts workshops, live music and dance performances, a beer garden, public art activations, an art shop, and countless opportunities for art lovers of all ages and abilities to explore and discover.

 

From Monday, July 22 to Sunday, July 28, the festival will offer affordable ticketed art workshops and performances at pop-up locations, such as breweries, studios, and performance venues. Community highlights include CREATE! pop-up art workshops at Off the Rail Brewing, Luppolo Brewing, and Strange Fellows Brewing from July 22-26 and studio art workshops at 1000 Parker Street, The Mergatroid Building, and The Arts Factory on July 28; Canadian musical artist Paul Pigat at the Firehall Arts Centre on July 25; legendary Canadian singer songwriter Art Bergmann at the Rickshaw Theatre on July 26; a roving piano and dance performance from Mascall Dance on July 26; live mural painting by Eastside Culture Crawl co-founder Richard Tetrault at E. 4th Ave and Ontario St. from July 22-26; and so much more."

Visit the website for more information! 

Pussy Riot

 There's a very exciting exhibit on now at the Polygon Gallery in North Vancouver. If you've never been, now is the perfect chance to go check it out. 

It's Velvet Terrorism: Pussy Riot's Russia. This is the first survey exhibition of this infamous feminist collective! How lucky are we? The group came to help curate the show, and even performed a live concert in town during the first week. 

The exhibit itself contains footage and photographs mixed with handwritten accounts of events they took part in and things that happened to them in Russia. It's extraordinary to witness their courage and bravery. 

The Pussy Riot exhibit is on now until June 2!  Don't miss out! 

Go Home Yuppie Scum

 An exciting new exhibit has landed at the SUM Gallery via the Queer Arts Festival in Chinatown. Preston Buffalo's Go Home Yuppie Scum uses altered reality technology, 3-D glasses, and even old school View Masters (remember those?) to comment on the state of Vancouver. 

Go check out Go Home Yuppie Scum on now at the SUM Gallery until June 6 ! 

All We Want Is More : The Tobias Wong Project

 If you haven't heard of Tobias Wong, the art world's enfant terrible whose life was cut short in 2010, then you must go visit the Museum of Vancouver for All We Want Is More: The Tobias Wong Project. 

This is the second retrospect that the museum has down for this hometown hero - yes Tobias Wong hails from Vancouver, but made his splash into the art world during his time in New York City. Curated by his friends and family, this is a thrilling world class exhibit that honours the sensibility of an artist who had his finger on the pulse of society. 

From his famed Bubble Chair to the iconic Sun Jars, there is something for everyone here. My personal favourites include the Anus sign that appeared in his apartment window across the street from gay bar The Cock in New York, the 9/11 matchbook, and the gold plated McDonalds "coke" spoon.

All We Want is More: The Tobias Wong Project is on now until July 23 at the Museum of Vancouver. 

aBIOTIC

 The New Media Gallery at the Anvil Centre in New West continues to blow my mind with their exhilarating exhibits. This time around, we are treated to aBIOTIC which revolves around the source of life itself, water. 

 In one room, a strong bass pulsates through a pool of inked water, creating ripples and shapes that are lit and projected up onto the wall canvas. 

In another room, we witness a CLOUD MACHINE. Literally, a machine that CREATES CLOUDS. It is hypnotic as we watch these clouds interact with music that either lures it forward through the glass case or pauses it and lets it all but evaporate. Absolutely hypnotic. 

And finally, in the main room, there is a box. Inside this box is dry ice, which pushes the oxygen out of the box. Then this robot machine is triggered and blows a soap bubble into said box. The bubble hangs in mid air. It is a beautiful thing and the guides / docents at this gallery will tell you more and perhaps reveal what the meanings are behind these three pieces of work. 

Go to the New Media gallery now to catch this exhibit on till April 23. 

Spring 2022 : Collected Works at Rennie

I was sad to hear that the Rennie Museum would be giving up its location in Chinatown soon, but happy to hear that they are giving the space over to the Chinese Canadian Museum. I recently went to visit, fearing it would be their last exhibit there (luckily there is at least one more to look forward to!) and I spoke with one of the employees, who told me that the gallery would be relocating, so there is still going to be a space in Vancouver to see Rennie's art collection! 

Right now though, there are a number of different artists being displayed at the Rennie that are worth your time :  Larry Clark, Katy Grannan, and Andres Serrano. Here's a sampling of some of their pieces, but I highly recommend you book your free visit now and look at the exhibition as a whole. 

Book your visit at the Rennie Gallery here. 

Shakespeare's First Folio and Yoko Ono at the VAG

 If you haven't yet gone to the Vancouver Art Gallery yet to check out Shakespeare's First Folio, it's pretty damn cool to see. It's like such an immense part of Western history, that one just has to go see it for their own eyes. 

Also on still is the Yoko Ono exhibit, which couldn't be more timely given what's happening in the Ukraine right now, with a message of peace and anti-war.  There are also enough participatory installations to keep one entertained. 

Speaking of participatory installations, the latest exhibit aims to engage viewers with its focus on Artificial Intelligence. I wasn't too fussed about this exhibit to be honest. I was also surprised to see an entire floor of the art gallery currently closed off as it is in between exhibitions. Considering it's Spring Break and many people might want to bring their kids to the art gallery to turn their kids onto art, I would've thought they'd want to have as many exhibits on and open during this period, but what do I know. 

Check out the Vancouver Art Gallery for yourself and see what you think! 

SUM Gallery : Sovereignty

 Did you know there was an art gallery here in Vancouver dedicated to Queer Arts? 

I just found out recently that the SUM Gallery exists, over in Chinatown! This space is courtesy of the Queer Arts Festival. 

On now until May 14 is the show Sovereignty by Duane Isaac, who is a Mi'gmaq photograpgher and mask maker.  

It's free to visit the SUM Gallery, you just have to book an appointment! Go check it out! 

David Wojnarowicz

I am so excited that the Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery up at UBC is currently showing an exhibit on aritst David Wojnarowicz with a focus on his photography and film. For those who don't know him, he was a contemporary of Keith Haring and was also a prominent AIDS activist and artist in New York City during the 80s. He eventually died of AIDS in 1992.

I did manage to pop into the Belkin for a quick walkabout, but I knew I needed to go back and really immerse myself into the works. Fortunately, we have until April 5 to check it out!

The David Wojnarowicz : Photography and Film 1978-1992 is on now at the Belkin Gallery at UBC until April 5.

WINDS

Still one of the best kept secrets in the lower mainland is the New Media Gallery out in New Westminster.

It may be small but it always has an intriguing exhibit going on, including the current one, titled WINDS.

Each piece that is showcased has something to do with the wind, whether it's livestream mirroring the speed of wind at a lake out East, or recreating a windy day from yesteryear.

The WINDS exhibit is on now until September 29.

A Queer Century, 1869-1969

On now until September 11 at the UBC Rare Books and Special Collections is a wonderful little exhibit featuring LGBTQ literature and art to celebrate several milestones including the 50th anniversary of the gay rights movement and the de-criminalization of homosexuality in Canada.