VANCOUVER, BC – The Public Art Program is delighted to premier two new works in the week of June 13, running through July 10. The Coastal City series of temporary video and print public art commissions launched on May 16 with new works appearing monthly through October 2016.
ARTIST: Laiwan, Vancouver, British Columbia
ARTWORK TITLE: Barnacle City, 1m40s
PLATFORM: Downtown Video Screens. Thanks to our screening partners: CoreVision (Granville and Robson Screen), CBC, Telus Gardens, Terry Fox Plaza, VanCity Theatre and Pacific Cinematheque.
PROJECT SYNOPSIS: Barnacle City by LAIWAN projects imaginative possibilities of a future city, or perhaps a city that once was, in which natural accretions are anchored among man-made structures. Where is this science-fiction inspired city? You will recognize Vancouver’s cityscape dramatically altered by this utopian / dystopian vision, alive with ocean forms.
BIO: LAIWAN is an interdisciplinary artist, writer and educator with a wide-ranging practice based in poetics and philosophy. Laiwan exhibits regularly and curates projects in Canada, the US, and Zimbabwe. She teaches in the MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts Program at Goddard College in Washington State, USA. She founded the OR Gallery (1983) in Vancouver and holds a MFA from Simon Fraser University for Contemporary Arts.
Visit the online home of the artist: laiwanette.net
ARTIST: Ryan Peter, Vancouver, British Columbia
ARTWORK TITLE: Untitled (3 images)
PLATFORM: Transit Shelters around the city
PROJECT SYNOPSIS: Ryan Peter’s images are created through a contact photo-printing process in which he uses acrylic paints, household chemicals and industrial materials that would be considered waste, registering the traces on translucent plastic film. The resulting images have curious biomorphic associations, cryptically alluding to a distant past or dystopic future of life forms. Working with traditional silver gelatin printing, the artist explores shifting relationships between physical and digital processes and evokes the tension between the natural world and human-centered activities in the urban environment. For his Coastal City project, the images are toned in black, white and grey to create different “moods” related to life on the coast.
BIO: Ryan Peter received a Masters of Fine Arts from the University of British Columbia in 2008. He was a semi-finalist in the 11th Annual RBC Painting Competition in 2009, and has been featured in numerous exhibitions across Canada and the United States. Recent shows include Presentation House Gallery (Satellite Gallery) in Vancouver and The Or Gallery in Vancouver.
TRANSIT SHELTER LOCATIONS (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
- Cambie 22M S/O Robson WS, Vancouver
- Howe 22.5M S/O Robson WS, Vancouver
- Keefer 20m E/O Taylor SS, Vancouver
- W. Pender 20m W/O Carrall NS, Vancouver
- Cambie 29m N/O W. 18th ES, Vancouver
- Cambie 23m s/o W. 54th WS, Vancouver
- E. Broadway 42m E/O Penticton SS, Vancouver
- Fraser 20m N/O E. 31st ES, Vancouver
- Fraser 22m N/O E. 19th ES, Vancouver
- W. Hastings 25M W/O Carrall NS, Vancouver
- E. Hastings 20m W/O Nanaimo NS, Vancouver
- Kingsway 20m W/O Lincoln NS, Vancouver
- Main 28m N/O E. 41st ES, Vancouver
- Nanaimo 20m S/O E. 5th WS, Vancouver
- Renfrew 20m N/O E. Broadway ES, Vancouver
- SW Marine 20m E/O Laurel SS, Vancouver
- SE Marine 29m E/O Knight Off-ramp SS
- Victoria Div 24M S/O Victoria Dr WS, Vancouver
- W. 49th 35m W/O Manitoba NS, Vancouver
- E. 49th 23m E/O Nanaimo SS, Vancouver
Works by Elisa Yon/Amanda Arcuri and Deanne Achong are continuing on view at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Plaza and the Canada Line City Centre station, respectively. Thanks to our partners Vancouver Civic Theatres and InTransit BC.
ABOUT THE SERIES
The fifteen new works that have been commissioned for the “Coastal City” series, are an opportunity for artists to explore the border between land and sea, the designation of boundaries and life in a region near the shore, the changing land and ocean-scape, the influx of people and goods, the unique ecosystems, challenges and opportunities – the circumstances that make coastal cities such as Vancouver unique.
The artworks are a diverse mix of unique artistic approaches ranging from digital and painterly abstraction to documentation of urban faces and spaces; from highlighting lifestyle choices to social alienation; and from specific histories to imaginative interventions. All are rooted in this place.
Other artists to look forward to in the series are: Jayce Salloum, Krista Schoening and Coley Mixan (Seattle), Kyla Mallett, Castle/Ingram/Grünenfelder, Emilie Crewe, Lisa g. Nielsen, Curtis Grahauer, Jason Nielsen, and Ben Bogart.
- Visit online galleries of the works by Nicolas Sassoon and Paul de Guzman that showed in May 2016.
These public projects are opportunities for residents and visitors to discover unique images and perspectives on urban life from members of Vancouver’s vibrant creative community. The Coastal City artworks were proposed by artists in response to an open call. The goals of these temporary artworks are to:
- Provide public art opportunities for artists who work in two-dimensional imagery
- Aspire to high caliber artworks in the context of international art practices
- Contribute to a stimulating public realm and enrich the experience of the city
The City’s Public Art Program is marking its 25th anniversary in 2016. The Public Art Program has facilitated over a hundred projects in twenty-five years, spanning large-scale permanent installations, design-team collaborations and artist-initiated artworks. For more information visit: vancouver.ca/publicart.
Media inquiries and images:
CITY OF VANCOUVER
Public Art Program
604 873 7947
publicart@vancouver.ca
Our City. Our Art. Our Vancouver 
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