Things To Do in Vancouver This Weekend
This weekend enjoy the luminous golden beauty of the Laburnum Walk at VanDusen Botanical garden, celebrate the Spot Prawn Festival and check out the Yellow Objects exhibition at Firehall Arts Centre. Sunshine makes all the difference, right? Make sure to get outside and soak up the sun.
Until further notice, in line with the public health order, non-essential travel into, within, and out of BC is not recommended. BC residents, let’s do our part by continuing to stay small and support local with your immediate household, in accordance with the latest guidelines.
Where: VanDusen Botanical Garden
What: Forty-three hybrid goldenchain trees (Laburnum x watereri ‘Vossii’) are blooming along VanDusen Garden’s Laburnum Walk. Laburnums bloom for a brief two weeks and are one of the most popular and Instagrammable blooms of the year. Laburnums are just one of the many May highlights in the Garden. Rhododendrons can be seen in an abundance of colour, and now is the perfect time to take a stroll down the Rhododendron Walk. Tickets are only available online for designated entry times at www.vandusengarden.ca.
Where: Firehall Arts Centre
What: Written and directed by Sydney Risk Award-winning playwright Derek Chan, yellow objects invites us to question our responsibility to future generations by stepping into a Hong Kong of two eras – 2019 and 2050. The exhibition will take patrons through the theatre to the Firehall’s courtyard, and be limited to ten patrons per showing. There will be no live performers – only objects, voice recordings, and projections. Over the twelve-day exhibition, there will be a total of fifty showings, each forty minutes in length.
Runs until May 22, 2021
Where: Online & Fisherman’s Wharf near Granville Island
What: The Spot Prawn Festival is back for 2021! Chefs’ Table Society of BC (CTS) and The Pacific Prawn Fishermen’s Association (PPFA) have “deconstructed” the much-loved annual event that was missed in 2020 due to the pandemic. A safe COVID-19 friendly format has been created for 2021.
Runs until May 29, 2021
Where: Online and Various locations throughout Metro Vancouver
What: From bird nerd to bird curious, from wise old owl to adventurous tot, there is an event for everyone during Vancouver Bird Celebration, a week-long series of events to celebrate Greater Vancouver’s birds. It was inspired by World Migratory Bird Day, a United Nations-sponsored initiative that recognizes the importance of birds as key indicators of our environment’s health. During the Bird Celebration, there will be bird-related workshops, walks, talks, exhibitions, and lectures across the Lower Mainland.
Runs until May 16, 2021
Where: Various Venues
What: Each May craft-based work is featured & exhibited in a 25-day festival through a variety of events at dozens of venues throughout Metro Vancouver & Fraser Valley. As the only month-long festival in North America designed to celebrate the vitality of our hand-crafted world, we are dedicated to enhancing appreciation of fine craft and our crafted environment from across a continuum, including the ancestral, tribal & traditional to leading-edge contemporary.
Runs until May 25, 2021
Where: Pacific National Exhibition Amphitheatre
What: DOXA is hosting seven separate drive-in film screenings to showcase the best of the festival and celebrate our 20th anniversary. This event will go ahead rain or shine, and is accessible by an enclosed motor vehicle only. COVID-19 health and safety protocols will be in place to ensure the safety of all attendees and staff.
Runs until May 15, 2021
Where: Online & Various locations
What: The 6th annual much-loved ParkerArtSalon is going Canada-wide this year featuring an online auction with Waddingtons, raising funds for the Beedie Luminaries Foundation. “Essential Travel” is the title of the auction, which will be hosted at the Pendulum Gallery for public viewing from May 3-28, while bidding commences online from May 6-16. Additionally, visitors can also visit a curated selection of the works of more than 60 Parker Street Studios artists at the GALLERY GEORGE—conveniently located next to the Parker Street Studios—with two consecutive exhibitions running May 6-16 and May 20-30.
Runs until May 30, 2021
Where: Kitsilano Community Centre
What:50+ farms and producers, food and coffee trucks
Runs on Sundays until October 31, 2021
Where: 50 E 30th Avenue & Ontario Street
What: 25+ farms and producers, food and coffee trucks
Runs on Saturdays until October 30, 2021
Where: Lakewood Dr. & E 13th Ave.
What: 60+ farms and producers, food and coffee trucks
Runs on Saturdays until October 30, 2021
Where: Vancouver Convention Centre West
What: In this exhibition, visitors of all ages discover a new way of reconnecting with the work of this great master. The very concept of Imagine Van Gogh is grandiose: visitors wander amongst giant projections of the artist’s paintings, swept away by every brushstroke, detail, painting medium and colour. Immersed in an extraordinary experience where all senses become fully awakened, viewers will be truly moved by such spectacular beauty. Visitors discover more than 200 of Van Gogh’s paintings, including his most famous works, painted between 1888 and 1890 in Provence, Arles and Auvers-sur-Oise.
Runs until August 29, 2021
Where: Science World
What: Arctic Voices takes visitors on a riveting journey over the tundra and into the world’s northernmost biome. Enjoy an immersive experience of the fascinating, changing Arctic through its many voices: its people, ecology, wildlife and way of life. Dance with auroras, hop on ice floes and learn just how deeply connected we are to the Arctic through this feature exhibition that will leave you awestruck and inspired.
Runs until September 6, 2021
Where: Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art
What: Launched in July 2020, the exhibition is a centennial birthday celebration of Bill Reid, who was born in 1920. The exhibition tells the story of Reid’s creative journey through four distinct sections: Voice, Process, Lineage, and Legacy. Curated by Gwaai Edenshaw—considered to be Reid’s last apprentice—the exhibition includes audio narratives, literary excerpts, rarely seen sketchbooks and casting molds, and short films, as well as newly commissioned works by Haida artist Cori Savard and singer-songwriter Kinnie Starr. It also includes the addition of two new artworks—the Eagle and Beaver Pole (1980) by Haida carver Reg Davidson and an exquisitely carved cedar door, designed by Bill Reid and carved by James Hart in 1980—as well as the anticipated commemorative book: Bill Reid, To Speak With a Golden Voice.
Runs until September 6, 2021
Where: Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art
What: This solo exhibition by Luke Parnell is a powerful exploration of the relationship between Northwest Coast Indigenous oral histories, conceptual art, and traditional formline design. Indigenous History in Colour’s playful juxtapositions and bold commentary are inspired by history, pop culture, and Bill Reid. Parnell’s multidisciplinary analysis of the shifting perspectives of Northwest Coast art in modern history challenges contemporary discourse on notions of reconciliation, repatriation and representation today.
Runs until May 9, 2021
Where: Polygon Gallery
What: Feast for the Eyes explores the rich history of food as one of photography’s most prevalent and enduring subjects. In an age where sharing images of food has emerged as a unique facet of contemporary culture, this exhibition offers a look at the timeless ways in which things we eat shape us and our perceptions of the world.
Runs until May 30, 2021
Where: The BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum
What: Paddles Up! The Canadian International Dragon Boat Festival Exhibit explores the festival’s history since the sport’s arrival at Expo 86. Discover unique artifacts, including two full-sized dragon boats, hear stories from athletes of all backgrounds, and learn about the festival’s cultural heritage.
Runs on Fridays and Saturdays until May 31, 2021
Where: Vancouver Maritime Museum
What: Silent Witness features a collection of photographs by Italian photographer and artist Stefano Benazzo who has spent decades seeking shipwrecks from some of the most remote locations around the globe. His work narrates the scenes of these wrecks with light and portrays the soul of the abandoned vessels. The photographs in Silent Witness tell the story of decay for these ships, capturing their architecture and presenting them as sculptures embedded in the landscape.
Runs until July 18, 2021
Where: Museum of Anthropology at UBC
What: The exhibition coincides with the 10th anniversary of the 2011 triple disaster that saw a 9.0 magnitude earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown hit the eastern region of Japan. A Future for Memory highlights nature’s destructive impact on humans and its regenerative potential, and explores how humans live in harmony with nature. It also examines how new connections and relationships have developed in the aftermath of this tragic event.
Runs until September 5, 2021
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: Sun Xun is a mid-career Chinese artist who works in a range of mediums including painting, drawing, animation, video and installation. In his highly imaginative video installation Mythological Time (2016), Sun takes viewers on a journey through his hometown of Fuxin in northern China, a coal-mining centre facing the depletion of its economic lifeblood. Sun’s video installation from the Gallery’s collection will be presented alongside a major 30-metre ink painting, being shown for the first time.
Runs until September 6, 2021
Where: Museum of Vancouver
What: The Museum of Vancouver and the University of British Columbia proudly present a new feature exhibition, A Seat at the Table, Chinese Immigration and British Columbia. This exhibition explores historical and contemporary stories of Chinese Canadians in BC and their struggles for belonging. It looks to food and restaurant culture as an entry point to feature stories that reveal the great diversity of immigrant experience and of the communities immigrants develop.
Runs until January 2022
Where: Gulf of Georgia Cannery National Historic Site
What: The exhibition features stories of adaptations and innovations in the commercial fishing industry and their effects on west coast communities. Four key areas of innovation will be highlighted – energy, fishing, preservation, and innovations of today. Quotes from the diverse fishing communities and examples of artifacts from each area of innovation will be featured, alongside interactive displays which will help visitors of all ages and backgrounds explore the question – What does innovation mean to you?
Runs until April 15, 2022
Where: The Contemporary Art Gallery
What: The first solo exhibition in a public gallery in Canada by American artist Leon Polk Smith (1906-1996). Focusing on paintings and works on paper from the 1950s, the exhibition charts a critical moment in Smith’s artistic career in which the signature visual language of his work began to manifest, reflective both of prevalent trends of the time and an increasing engagement with the contexts of his upbringing and identity. Big Form, Big Space provides a timely opportunity to re-evaluate Smith’s place within art history, looking beyond the strict appreciation of his place within hard-edge modernist abstraction to encompass broader considerations of context, time and identity.
Runs until August 20, 2021
Listening together has always been Music on Main’s deepest purpose. The shared music and art experiences throughout this past year have become a beacon of light for human connection between listeners and creators. Music on Main remains committed to bringing audiences and artists together through exceptional digital and in-person musical experiences in ways that feel safe, inviting, and welcoming. No matter where you are in the world for five days you can experience online performances by top-flight artists (see media release for more information on these talented performers), listen to artist talks and experience opportunities to learn about music.
Streaming until May 18, 2021
DOXA is presented by The Documentary Media Society, a Vancouver based non-profit, charitable society devoted to presenting independent and innovative documentaries to Vancouver audiences. Between May 6 – 16, you will be able to watch all films in the DOXA 2021 film program from the comfort of your own home. Films will be available to watch on-demand for 48 hours after they are unlocked. Select screenings will include pre-recorded filmmaker Q+As and extended discussions.
Runs until May 16, 2021
explorASIAN is an annual Metro-Vancouver festival showcasing pan-Asian Canadian arts and culture during Asian Heritage Month in May. Programming continues to showcase the great achievements and contributions of Canadians of Asian descent in the arts and culture scene, with expanded programming that reflects pressing issues facing Asian-Canadian communities in Metro-Vancouver.
Runs until May 31, 2021
The Vancouver International Dance Festival celebrates its 21st season with 18 livestream contemporary dance performances. Broadcast from the KW Production Studio, the 2021 VIDF presents cinematic perspectives of contemporary dance streamed live to wherever you are. This weekend Vancouver’s Company 605 will present Brimming (April 29-30 & May 1). The new solo investigating the body as a container was created and performed by its co-artistic director Josh Martin.
Streaming until June 19, 2021
Inspired by French arthouse film, stage director Brenna Corner adds a non-traditional lens to Bizet’s beloved masterpiece. Playing with the conflicting ideas of fate and choice, Carmen: Up Close and Personal is an alluring, intimate and stripped-down cinematic adaptation, focused on the four principal characters, with a few twists and turns along the way. Starring members of the Yulanda M. Faris Young Artists Program with members of the Vancouver Opera Orchestra.
Streaming until June 1, 2021
The Chan Centre’s Spring 2021 Dot Com Series features eight all-new performances which will be delivered 100% online and recorded around the globe—from Mexico to Montreal to our very own Chan Centre stage. Additional Performances launched every two weeks.
Runs until May 31, 2021