West Coast Modern Home Tour

Harbour House, 2008

Saturday July 11, 2009 from 12 pm to 4pm
Home Tour Reception from 4pm to 6pm
Check-in for the tour is at the West Vancouver Museum from 11 am to 12 pm
Buses depart at 12 pm
Call 604-925-7270 or click here to Register!
Course Code: 630467$ 100 includes tour bus, tickets for door prizes and reception

Do not miss the chance to visit five architect designed and award winning private homes in West Vancouver!

The West Vancouver Museum’s annual West Coast Modern Home Tour takes place Saturday July 11 from 12pm to 4pm followed by a reception held in a spectacular home designed by Battersby Howat in 2005 that received Western Living’s Best in the West Award.

Bonetti House, 2005

Arthur Erickson’s 1989 Eppich Residence II is constructed using custom-made structural steel and is a special highlight of the tour. Other houses include the 1958 Gerson Residence by Wolfgang Gerson built on a steep treed slope on the west side of Sentinel Hill and the 1960 Houg Residence. Although the original architect of the Houg Residence is unknown and the house fell into disrepair over the years, the current owner has taken on an extensive renovation to restore it. The most recently built home on the tour is located on a south-facing slope of an almost inaccessible granite cliff: The 2008 Harbour House by Blue Sky Architecture builds on the traditions of West Coast Modernism blending nature with carefully designed architecture in a rugged coastal setting.

A complete information package, with details of the tour homes, will be made available to tour participants when they check-in. Please register in advance by visiting the Museum’s website http://www.westvancouvermuseum.ca/ or calling 604-925-7270 with the program code 630467. The fee for this tour, $ 100 per participant, includes a guided bus tour of five homes and a wine reception with fine appetisers and a chance to win one of several unique door prizes. Registration is limited- -so register early to ensure a spot on the tour!
For more information, please call 604-925-7179 or visit the Museum’s website.

Photos:
Harbour House, West Vancouver, B.C.Helliwell + Smith, Blue Sky Architecture, 2008
Photograph taken by Gillean Proctor, photo courtesy of Blue Sky Architecture

Bonetti House, West Vancouver, B.C., Battersby Howat Inc, 2005

Simon Scott-The Architecture of Photography

Simon Scott
Architecture of Photography
Opening reception June 23, 7:00 pm
Exhibition runs from June 24 to August 22, 2009

Photo: Simon Scott, University of Lethbridge 1972

Arthur Erickson Architect 1972

Sea to Sky Geology Tour-Back by Popular Demand

Join us for a guided geology tour along the Sea to Sky highway, which will be led by an experienced geologist, David Cook, on Saturday June 27, 2009.




This one day geology bus tour will take you along the east side of North America's most southerly fjord (Howe Sound) where you will see such geological features as debris flows and the engineering that has been used to tame them, ice sculptures rock surfaces, beehive hills raised deltas, a hanging valley, glacial erratic boulders, glaciers, and ice fields, a volcano and basalt that flowed beneath a glacier. All these features sit upon 400 million year old metamorphosed volcanic rocks and 100 million year old granitic rocks that form the backbone of our North Shore mountain.

Do not miss this one day tour, filled with interesting information!
To register, please visit: webreg.westvancouver.ca
The code for this program is 630117. $ 40 per person.
The bus is scheduled to leave the West Vancouver Museum at 9 am and return to the Museum by 5 pm.

Photo:
A group of people standing in front of a lava flow, which flowed from the Garibaldi volcanic centre about 10000 years ago. Note the jointing, which formed as the lava cooled. In the Sea to Sky geology tour, we will make a stop here and see this feature.

Photo by David Cook, 2005

Another chance to see Selwyn Pullan exhibition

Selwyn Pullan
Positioning the New

On View at Charles H. Scott Gallery from June 3 – July 19, 2009

Emily Carr University, Granville Island

1399 Johnston Street, Vancouver BC V6H 3R9

Monday to Friday 12pm to 5pm

Saturday and Sunday 10am to 5pm

Tel 604 844 3809

Positioning the New presents a comprehensive survey of the work of Canadian photographer Selwyn Pullan, who studied photography at the Los Angeles Art Center (now the Art Center College of Design), graduating in 1950. Architectural photography, then a relatively new profession, had emerged in parallel to modernism and advances in architecture in North America during the late 1930s, and Pullan found his niche in this genre. Pullan’s photographs promoted the new style to a populace eager to embrace a modern way of living. His images were frequently included in photo essays in major design and architecture periodicals nation-wide. This retrospective demonstrates the photographer’s intimate connection to the development of modernism on the West Coast of Canada and highlights the social, economic, and cultural forces that changed the face of Vancouver and the region during the post-war boom.

The West Vancouver Museum gratefully acknowledges the financial support of Hughes Condon Marler: Architects and British Columbia Arts Council.

Image: Selwyn Pullan, Frederic Wood Theatre, 1963, Vancouver; Thompson, Berwick & Pratt Architects, Roy Jessiman partner-in-charge, Barry Downs project designer, 1963

Selwyn Pullan: Positioning the New is organized by the West Vancouver Museum.

Artist Talk - Lyle Wilson

North Star: The Art of Lyle Wilson
Saturday, April 18, 1:30pm-3pm

Special Guest: Lyle Wilson

Please join us for a talk with acclaimed artist Lyle Wilson, who will present an overview of his art, focusing largely on his work in the North Star exhibition. Wilson emerged on the NWC art scene after graduating from the Emily Carr College of Art and Design in 1986. Since then, Wilson has produced art for private, public and corporate collectors as well as for his home community in Kitamaat. Wilson explores Haisla tradition and his western urban experiences through his work and will share the creative inspiration and the process behind his meticulously detailed artwork.

GORDON SMITH PRINT PROJECT

Tangled Beach/Beach Tangle is a limited-edition fine art print inspired by Beach Tangle, a monumental sculpture created by Gordon Smith with the assistance of Curtis Racette. The sculpture, comprised of materials found on local beaches, graces the west wall of the Spirit Square Atrium at the West Vancouver Community Centre. The print carries on the same theme using the sculpture as inspiration.

In creating the print Tangled Beach/Beach Tangle Smith first created a montage of photographs transposed from the sculpture and augmented this with additional imagery. The completed montage was then reproduced onto a copper etching plate and printed by hand using traditional intaglio techniques. Accents of colour were hand-painted in watercolour by Smith on each print. Published by the District of West Vancouver, this edition of prints was produced at the New Leaf Editions studio on Granville Island by Master Printer Peter Braune and Katie Dey in collaboration with the artist.

Both the print and the sculpture were donated by Gordon Smith through the District of West Vancouver Public Art Program with the assistance of the Spirit Square Grant from the Province of British Columbia. Proceeds support the West Vancouver Museum and future public art projects in West Vancouver.

Tangled Beach/Beach Tangle

Artist: Gordon Smith

Medium: Photo-based etching, hand-painted with watercolour

Size: 29 X 34 inches

Edition: 70 prints numbered 1 /70 to 70/70 ,

7 artist proofs, 3 studio proofs

Price: First lot of 20 prints will be offered at a new release price of $925; second lot of 20, $1025; third lot of 20, $1125; and the final lot of 10, $1250

This work of art is available for purchase at the West Vancouver Museum Shop. For more information or to order by phone, please call 604-925-7179.

Photo by Rosamond Norbury, 2009: Tangled Beach/Beach Tangle, Gordon Smith, 2009

North Star: The Art of Lyle Wilson

March 4 to May 30, 2009

Opening Reception on March 3, 2009 at 7pm

Presented with the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad

The West Vancouver Museum is pleased to showcase North Star: The Art of Lyle Wilson featuring the evocative and meticulously rendered artwork of Haisla artist Lyle Wilson.

Lyle Wilson has been an important figure on the Canadian art scene for more than two decades. He is from Kitamaat Village in Northern British Columbia. For many years, Wilson maintained his studio in West Vancouver, producing extraordinary works on commission and for sale, as well as for the benefit of his home community. The focus of this retrospective exhibition is on Wilson's diverse artistic practice with an emphasis on his labour intensive paintings and carvings, which explore various themes and imagery.

The West Vancouver Museum will be holding an opening reception on Tuesday March 3, 2009 from 7pm to 9pm.

Top: Lyle Wilson, North Star, 2009, anodized aluminum, 48" x 48" x 0.375

Photograph by Jenn Walton, 2009

Spring Art Camps at the Museum!

Children’s Hands On Programs!

Draw, paint, sculpt, make prints and explore the world of art history at the West Vancouver Museum! Participants will create artworks in watercolour, silkscreen, clay and more!

March 9-12, 1pm-4:30pm, Ages 6-8

Course Code 568167, $ 125

March 17-20, 1pm-4:30pm, Ages 9-11

Course Code 568267

4 ways to register for these programs:

WebReg

webreg.westvancouver.ca

Tele-Reg

604-925-7475

Telephone

604-925-7270

In Person

at any recreation facility from 8:30am during office hours.

Diamond Head Chalet-A Family’s Journey

Saturday February 21, 2009

Guest Speaker: Donald Grant
Archivist Historian of the Hollyburn Heritage Society and the Hollyburn Ridge Association

Two showings of the film will run at the Museum from 1:30 pm to 3:00 pm and from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm.

In the mid-1940s, three Hollyburn Mountain pioneers, Joan Mathews, Ottar Brandvold, and Emil Brandvold, built beautiful Diamond Head beside Elfin Lakes in Garibaldi Provincial Park. During the next three decades, thousands of people visited the lodge to enjoy summer hiking, winter skiing, and the warm hospitality of Joan and the Brandvold brothers. Donald Grant’s film, “Diamond Head Chalet – A Family’s Journey” (2008) tells the story of the lodge and the Brandvold/Mathews family. The film features over 200 historic photos and slides, spectacular colour movies from the 1940s, and contemporary video taken during a family reunion at Elfin Lakes in September, 2007.

Descendants of Joan, Ottar, and Emil will be present to answer questions.

Registration is not required for attending this talk, but limited space is available for seating. Admission is by donation.

Printmaking

Artist Talk on Saturday January 24, 1:30-3pm
Guest Artist: Wayne Eastcott

Printmaking in B.C. began to flourish in the mid-twentieth century with leading artists and art educators, such as F.H. Varley, J.W.G Macdonald and Charles Scott influencing the next generation of artists. Wayne Eastcott, renowned printmaker and instructor, will give an illustrative presentation of the development of printmaking in B.C. and will profile contemporary artists who use innovative new techniques in their work.

Wayne Eastcott
Wayne Eastcott graduated from the Vancouver School of Art in 1966 and was one of the very few artists at that time who was actively involved in printmaking. Receiving a Canada Council Grant in 1968 for exploration in new printmaking techniques, in particular the Xerox technique, he actively engaged in working with Xerox Corporation in Rochester, New York and Fuji-Xerox in Tokyo, Japan. In 1971, Wayne met B.C. Binning who established the Dundrave Print Workshop in West Vancouver (which is now operating on Granville Island) and became one of its founding members. Just after graduating, Wayne returned to the Vancouver School of Art to teach drawing, painting and printmaking and in 1979 he joined the art faculty of the Capilano College (now the Capilano University). Wayne's ground breaking exhibition at the Kabutoya Gallery in Japan in 1979 was highly successful and he has earned a reputation as an outstanding artist, teacher and mentor since then. Wayne has exhibited widely both in Canada and abroad, including the recent exhibitions in the Faulun Triennial in Sweden and Printmaking at the Edge in Korea.

Photo: Wayne Eastcott, 1970s

Children's Hands On!
Printmaking Workshop for children 8-11 years old
Saturday January 31, 9am-3:30pm
Explore Colour, texture, shape and form through the art of printmaking! Museum Educator Isaac Vanderhorst will introduce children to the work of well-known printmakers and a wide variety of simple printmaking techniques. Participants will experiment with relief block printmaking, the oldest and most basic form of printmaking, produce multiple prints and collages and create their own unique Valentines Day cards. To register, please call 604-925-7270 and quote the course code 574617. $ 45 per child.

New at the Museum Giftshop!

Vintage B.C. Binning Cards

A limited number of vintage B.C. Binning greeting cards are now available at the West Vancouver Museum. These cards were originally produced by B.C. Binning for his own use and include reproductions of his unique drawings. A set of four cards is $10, while quantities last.


Notes to Nourish is a grassroots project featuring original art by local artists and designers. The Museum has limited-edition sets of holiday greeting cards that help raise money for the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society and British Columbia SPCA. The cards present a unique way to give back during the holidays. A set of four cards is $ 10, or get two sets for $ 15. Visit http://www.notestonourish.com/ for more information.


Hollyburn Lodge Cards
Hollyburn Lodge Cards include photographs from the Hollyburn Heritage Society Collection reproduced by the District of West Vancouver to raise awareness of the Hollyburn Lodge Restoration Project. These cards are $2 each or three for $5
West Vancouver Archives photo (0866 WVA HHS OOMM): Near the Hollyburn Pacific Ski Camp, Hollyburn Heritage Society collection, Ommund Ommundsen series, [192-]. Photo by Rudolph Verne and Oscar Pearson.

Winter Hours

The West Vancouver Museum gallery will be closed from Tuesday December 23, 2008 to Saturday January 3rd, 2009. Our regular open hours will resume from Tuesday January 6th, 2009.

Please Note
Wayne Eastcott's presentation, originally scheduled for January 17, 2009, has been changed to January 24th, 2009 at 1:30pm.

Talks and demonstrations on printmaking

Guest Artist: Wayne Eastcott
Saturday November 22, 2008, 1:30-3pm
Discover the printmaking techniques used by Alistair Bell, who is recognized as one of Canada’s finest printmakers. Wayne Eastcott, innovative printmaker and educator, will demonstrate the techniques Bell used in the creation of his prints. Eastcott will make second presentation on the history of printmaking in B.C. on January 24, 2009 from 1:30-3pm.


Guest Artist: Taiga Chiba
Saturday October 18, 1:30-3pm
Taiga Chiba has worked internationally seeking inspiration and acquiring alternative skills that build on the traditional Japanese printmaking techniques he uses in his own art. He will share his experience teaching printmaking to Inuit artists in Nunavut and as an artist in residence in Mexico, India, Brazil, and Thailand.

Guest Speaker: Alan Bell
Saturday, November 1, 1:30-3pm
Alan Bell, son of renowned printmaker Alistair Bell and graduate of the UBC Fine Arts Department, will give an illustrated talk on his father’s evolution as an artist. Topics include major events in Alistair Bell’s artistic career, significant influences and inspirations. Alan will also touch on Bell’s preferred subject matter, printmaking media and working methods.

Guest Artist: Wayne Eastcott
Saturday November 22, 2008, 1:30-3pm
Discover the printmaking techniques used by Alistair Bell, who is recognized as one of Canada’s finest printmakers. Wayne Eastcott, innovative printmaker and educator, will demonstrate the techniques Bell used in the creation of his prints. Eastcott will make second presentation on the history of printmaking in B.C. on January 17, 2009 from 1:30-3pm.


Please Note: The date of Wayne Eastcott's second presentation has changed from January 17 to January 24, 2009.

Top Image: From St. Paul’s, four colour woodcut, 1956, edition 25/25, promised gift of Alan Bell

Documentary Screening of Forced March to Freedom

David Paperny’s documentary film Forced March to Freedom, is based on a book of the same name written and illustrated by Robert Buckham. The film illustrates the experiences of Canadian air personnel imprisoned in German PoW camps during World War II.

At the end of the Second World War, ten thousand prisoners of war anticipated liberation courtesy the advancing Russian Red Army. The retreating Germans forced the prisoners to march out of Stalag Luft III in the dead of winter toward the center of a collapsing Third Reich in order to keep the PoW’s as hostages. Forced March to Freedom tells the story of this amazing test of endurance through the eyes of Robert Buckham, a bomber pilot and artist who produced countless sketches and watercolours of prison camp life, as well as one of the only chronicles of the forced march itself. Interviews with Buckham and other PoW's accentuate the sketches of camp life and the march as well as the few actual photographs of the march known to exist.

Documentary Screening of Forced March to Freedom, Paperny Films, 2001
at the West Vancouver Museum on
Saturday November 8th from 1:30 to 2:30 pm

Registration is not required, but limited space is available for seating. Admission is by donation.

photo: Robert Buckham, Untitled (from Forced March) 1945, pen and ink on paper. Courtesy of Nancy Buckham

Impressions of Nature: The Prints of Alistair Bell

Please join us for the opening reception
Tuesday, October 7, 2008 from 7pm to 9pm

Canadian master printmaker Alistair Bell produced some 300 prints over the span of 62 years. Impressions of Nature: The Prints of Alistair Bell examines the contemplative prints and drawings that Bell created in his home studio in West Vancouver until he passed away in 1997. Bell's main interests eschew the human in favour of solitary animals and birds, as well as atypical landscapes and vegetation, boats and harbour scenes. All of these subjects attracted Bell with their strong, often linear or angular form, and are rendered with a striking clarity and expressiveness. His remarkable ability to capture the inner essence of his subjects - achieved through a meticulous process of observation and abstraction - sets Bell's graphic images apart, as they have us see the world intimately and unexpectedly anew.

Photo: Dead Bird, Cox Bay, Alistair Bell, pen and ink on paper, 1981. Courtesy of Alan Bell, urbanpictures.com photo, 2008

Closing Reception

Selwyn Pullan: Positioning the New

Closing Reception

Saturday, September 20th, 2008, 2-5pm
Special Guest: Selwyn Pullan

This is your last chance to visit the Museum’s highly popular exhibition featuring a comprehensive survey of the work of Canadian photographer Selwyn Pullan.

There will be a special presentation of photographs not shown in the current exhibition. Admission to this event is by donation.

Ross A. Lort, Architect, built in 1942,

Selwyn Pullan photo, c. 1960.

New in the Giftshop!

Selwyn Pullan: Positioning the New

Photographs from 1945 - 1975

West Vancouver Museum is pleased to announce the publication of the Selwyn Pullan exhibition catalogue. This book is available at the Museum Giftshop for $12.00 (+GST), or can be sent by mail. Shipped to you, the book is $17 (within Canada including tax). Please stop by the Museum to purchase your copy, or call 604-925 7295 to inquire about shipping.

Tea and Tour on August 28th

YOU ARE INVITED to join us for a guided museum tour and lovely afternoon tea at the West Vancouver Museum. Walk through our current exhibition Selwyn Pullan: Positioning the New and enjoy tea and refreshments served in the museum garden. This is a great opportunity to get more in depth information on the Pullan exhibition and chat with your neighbours. Please contact the museum for more information and make a booking in advance.

Selwyn Pullan: Positioning the New demonstrates the photographer’s intimate connection to the development of modernism on the West Coast of Canada and highlights the social, economic and, cultural forces that changed the face of Vancouver and the region during the post-war boom.

Admission $10 Adults, $8 Senior/Student

Thursday August 28, 2:00 p.m. — 3:30 p.m.

Please register in advance by calling the Museum

at 604-925-7295.

Summer Camp News

During the month of July the Museum's Education Coordinator, Isaac Vanderhorst, held three art camps, and one architecture camp. Our architecture camp was a new offering and it was a grand success. The young architects designed their own floor plans, constructed their own models, and travelled downtown to study the architecture of buildings including the Hotel Vancouver, the Marine Building, and the Vancouver Public Library. Please look out for our Spring Break camps, and Summer camps next year, and until then here are some photos from the architecture camp.

West Coast Modern Home And Garden Tour

Explore spectacular architect designed mid-century West Coast modern homes perched on the rocky slopes of West Vancouver!

Join us and learn about the fascinating architectural expression of the Modernist era and visit five unique homes that embody West Coast modern design.

A special reception from 3-5pm held in a Ron Thom designed showcase home immediately follows the tour.

Home tour: Saturday July 12 from 11 am to 3pm Reception: 3-5pm

Don’t miss this special tour and your opportunity to win fabulous door prizes at the reception. Tickets are now on sale for $ 60 (includes taxes) by calling 604-925-7270 or visiting webreg.westvancouver.ca (program code 489167)



The West Vancouver Museum is operated by the District of West Vancouver Parks & Community Services Department. The support of the British Columbia Arts Council-Province of BC; private and corporate sponsors, and Museum volunteers and visitors is gratefully acknowledged.

Top photo: Forrest Residence, TBP; Ron Thom and Dick Mann Designers, 1962, Selwyn Pullan photographer

Canadian Artists on the West Coast

Join Gordon Smith as he shares his life long passion for art and offers incredible insight into the development of the Vancouver and Canadian art scene.

Gordon Smith, one of Canada's most prolific and renowned artists, is highly regarded for his artistic contributions and generous support for art education.

He will be giving a presentation at the West Vancouver Museum on Saturday June 28 from 1:30pm. There will be a special reception following the talk.

* Limited space is available for seating. Tickets are now on sale for $ 15 (includes taxes) by calling 604-925-7270 or visiting www.westvancouver.net/webreg (program code 504817).

New Exhibition Opening on June 24th at 7pm!

Selwyn Pullan

Position the New

Photographs from 1945 -1975

Please join us for the opening reception
Tuesday June 24, 2008 from 7pm to 9pm

Positioning the New presents a comprehensive survey of the work of Canadian photographer Selwyn Pullan, who studied photography at the Los Angeles Art Center (now the Art Center College of Design), graduating in 1950. Architectural photography, then a relatively new profession, had emerged in parallel to modernism and advances in architecture in North America during the late 1930s, and Pullan found his niche in this genre. Pullan's photographs promoted the new style to a populace eager to embrace a modern way of living. His images were frequently included in photo essays in major design and architecture periodicals nation-wide.

This retrospective demonstrates the photographer's intimate connection to the development of modernism on the West Coast of Canada and highlights the social, economic, and cultural forces that changed the face of Vancouver and the region during the post-war boom.



Photo courtesy of Selwyn Pullan. Frederic Wood Theatre, Vancouver; TBP, Roy Jessiman partner-in-charge, Barry Downs project designer. photographed in 1963.

Geology Tour

Join Geologist David Cook for a geology bus tour of the North Shore Mountains and Burrard Inlet!

Beginning with an overview of the area from the hi-view Lookout in Cypress Provincial Park, we will proceed to a number of locations around the Inlet such as Caulfeild Park, Sentinel Hill and the Capilano River with Prospect Point in Stanley Park as the final destination. You will learn how this region was formed by the forces of plate tectonics, ice and water over many millions of years of Earth's geological history.

This is an all-day event, so be sure to bring lunch and water. Wear good walking shoes, as there will be short walks at some stops.

Limited space is available. Please register in advance.

Saturday, May 24 9am-4:30pm
Program Code 486817 $ 40 per person
Call 604-925-7270 to register
The tour bus leaves from the Museum at 9 am

For more details, contact the West Vancouver Museum at 604-925-7179.

Building the Future

When architect Freda Pagani talks about being at home on different levels, she doesn't mean different floors of her house.

Rosalind Duane, North Shore News
Published: Sunday, April 20, 2008


The West Vancouver resident and former director of sustainability at UBC, now retired, says it’s important to consider the environmental footprints you leave in your house, your community, your country and on the earth, and how they are connected.

Certain actions at home have an impact on the environment, which affects the surrounding local community, as well as the larger global community, she explains.

“I think the majority of us have accepted that climate change is underway, and I think people feel helpless about how to have an impact,” says Pagani, but adds that small changes do add up. “We can all be part of a solution.”

On Wednesday, April 30, Pagani will give a presentation called Sustainability at Home, at the West Vancouver Museum. Her presentation will focus on sustainable or “green” practices for the home. Some of the simplest ways to make changes at home that will help reduce energy use include: changing traditional incandescent light bulbs to fluorescents, using less hot water, using clothes dryers and dishwashers less and turning off lights and electronic equipment when not in use.

As an architect, Pagani has been on the forefront of an important trend in sustainability: green building. Green building refers to environmental practices applied to designing new buildings and renovations in order to reduce the construction’s negative impact on the environment. These practices can include simple measures, such as choosing energy-efficient appliances and making sure the home or addition is well insulated and has proper windows to prevent energy loss. Green practices can also include less traditional things such as installing solar panels to heat hot water, or even using geothermal heating, which employs natural energy from under the ground to heat or cool a home.

“The design should respond to the local context, the local climate, the local geography and the local culture,” adds Pagani.
“Indigenous building tends to be green just by its nature because it’s very suitable to its local context.”

She notes that houses should use local materials, responding to local climate, and should not necessarily look the same in different places because of the climate difference. If you live in a rainy climate, your building should shelter both people and the building skin from rain. If you live in a very hot, dry climate, your building should shade the occupants and move air through the building easily so the building can cool down quickly.

When renovating or building a home, Pagani says it’s also important to reuse materials whenever possible.

“About a third of the waste going to landfills in the Lower Mainland is construction waste,” she notes.

When buying in a new building, homeowners can ask their realtor or developer what green features there are in the building. Many developers are now using green building rating systems like LEED or Built Green, so there’s some kind of certification that the home has some green features.

The trend to green building started in the Northwest in the early 1990s. At that time, Pagani was involved in the design of new buildings at UBC and pushed for a demonstration green building on the campus: the C.K. Choi building.

Slots under the windows in the Choi building facilitate natural ventilation, and there are a lot of reused building materials on site. For example, the exterior bricks used on a good portion of the building come from a street in Yaletown, and before that they were used as ballast on ships coming over from Britain.
The heavy timber used in the construction is from a building that was across the street on the campus. The Choi building also uses a composting toilet to save water.

“In the Lower Mainland and we’re not used to thinking of water as a valuable resource because it rains here so much,” says Pagani. The composting toilets consist of 16-inch diameter stainless steel tubing that travels from the toilet fixture into a tank in the basement. The tank is kept moist and mulch is added to bulk it up. Liquid from the tank [90 per cent of what goes into the tank is liquid] is pumped up into a constructed wetland in the front of the building, which has a series of plants with microbes and roots that purify the water as it goes along the trench, By the time it reaches the end of the trench, the water passes the same health standards found on most beaches in Vancouver, and it’s better than some of the beaches.

Composing toilets are available for use in homes, and the technology has come a long way to make it “non-offensive” to have a composting toilet in a house, says Pagani.

Other design features that may help save energy at home include incorporating passive solar design into the layout of a home. This means designing the house so that sun is allowed in to heat up the house when you want the heat, but shades the house from the sun when you don’t want the heat in the summer. That’s easily done with overhangs, the placement of windows, and a good design, explains Pagani. Homeowners can also plant deciduous trees where they want to let the sun into the home in the winter and have shade in the summer. It’s not necessary to have air conditioning in Lower Mainland homes if the homes are designed properly, says Pagani.

She says reducing energy use is the most important green initiative families and individuals can take to help the environment.

Fossil fuels [such as coal, oil, gasoline and natural gas] are a non-renewable source of fuel since the fossil source they use is not being replenished as fast as it’s being used. It is now widely accepted that fossil fuels are damaging the environment and contributing to global warming.

Pagani states: “You have to do you part and do what you can to save energy.”


Sustainability at Home
Guest Speaker: Dr. Freda Pagani
Wednesday April 30, 7-8:30pm
@ West Vancouver Museum

New Guest Speaker Series

Architecture and Green Building Practices

Wednesday, April 2, 7-8:30pm
Topic: Building Sustainable Communities
Guest Speaker: Darryl Condon, Principal, Hughes Condon Marler: Architects

Darryl Condon discusses his philosophy and approach to designing community facilities with a focus on the key role they play in building a sustainable community. The presentation will include case studies of recent public buildings completed by his firm, including the new Whistler Public Library and the upcoming West Vancouver Community Centre, which is currently under construction.

Darryl Condon, PRINCIPAL, MAIBC, OAA, MRAIC, LEED® AP
Darryl studied architecture at McGill University's School of Architecture. As principal at HCMA, he offers his clients more than 18 years of experience, along with special expertise in civic institutions, community centres recreation, sport and aquatic facilities. He has played an important role in the design and construction of highly innovative public facilities including Walnut Grove Community Centre. He currently serves as Principal-in-Charge for the West Vancouver Community Centre and the Hillcrest Curling Facility/Percy Norman Aquatic Centre.

Photo courtesy of Hughes Condon Marler: Architects
Top image: Model of the new Whistler Public Library
Bottom image: West Vancouver Community Center drawing

Wednesday, April 16, 7-8:30pm
Topic: Buildings, Communities and Cities: Reaching for Zero Carbon Solutions
Guest Speaker: Veronica Gillies, MRAIC, MAIBC, LEED® AP, Busby Perkins +WILL
Cities are the key to successfully achieving a sustainable future for everyone. Cities provide utility services but also through zoning regulation density and land use provide transit and roads, and through bylaws regulate building design and construction. Community action within cities will act as the catalyst for zero carbon solutions. The scale of communities makes them an ideal catalyst for the types of synergies required for deep green solutions to our energy and carbon emissions challenges. The presentation will take an in-depth look at sustainable buildings; buildings at the community level and cities to address their impact on climate change.

With over 14 years of experience spanning three Canadian cities, Veronica holds a strong portfolio of commercial, institutional and high-rise residential work. Since joining the Vancouver firm Busby Perkins Will in 1999, she has played a key role in a number of sustainable high-rise residential and institutional projects, several of which are recipients of the Governor General Awards. She is a strong proponent of sustainable design and has prepared reports and delivered presentations in support of various initiatives most recently the highly debated EcoDensity Program proposed by the City of Vancouver. Because of a firm belief in contributing to the architectural community, Veronica is actively involved in various professional organizations. She is an active member of the Vancouver League for Studies in Architecture; she serves as Vice Chair for the West Vancouver Design Advisory Panel, and is a member of the Architectural Institute of British Columbia’s Executive Council. She chairs the Council Working Group on Sustainability and is the liaison to the Communications Board and the Energy and Environment Committee.

Wednesday, April 30, 7-8:30pm
Topic: Sustainability at Home Guest Speaker: Dr. Freda Pagani, Architect and a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, Founding Director of UBC Campus Sustainability Office
Dr. Freda Pagani, long-term resident of West Vancouver, cares deeply about the earth, but also about the quality of life in our community. She believes we need more affordable and diverse housing types in order to maintain the character of the municipality. Her passion for green building led to the development of the C.K.Choi Building at the University of British Columbia. It, along with a few other buildings, became a catalyst for the green building movement in Canada and won one of the top ten Green Buildings awards from the American Institute of Architects. Dr. Pagani will discuss ways to preserve the physical quality of West Vancouver, while improving our ecological footprint. The presentation will cover the history of the green building industry in the Lower Mainland and recent initiatives, which could further reduce our dependency on fossil fuels.

Photo courtesy of F. Pagani, C.K. Choi Building, the University of British Columbia

Wednesday, May 14, 7-8:30pm
Topic: Designing Of the Hill, Not On the Hill
Guest Speakers: Kim Smith and Bo Helliwell of Blue Sky Architecture

Peter Davey stated in Picturesque, Tectonic, Romantic Helliwell + Smith Blue Sky Architecture (1999) that “Helliwell and Smith are the inheritors of the organic tradition of modernism”. A building that is well-designed for its site will enhance an appreciation of the surrounding environment and amplify long-term sustainable values. By using examples of recent award-wining work, Helliwell and Smith will illustrate their approach to design, including Wakefield Beach Homes in Sechelt, a home in Eagle Harbour and several homes in the Gulf Islands.


Admission for each presentation is $ 5.

Duncan McNab and West Coast Modernism

Guest Speaker: J. Terry Barkley, MAIBC, MAAA, MRAIC, Assoc. AIA, Vice President, Cannon Design

Saturday, April 12, 1:30-3pm
Duncan McNab became well-known in BC for his residential and institutional designs. This talk highlights McNab’s role in the development of a regionally distinct West Coast Modern architecture. Join Terry Barkley, former associate of Duncan McNab and Associates, who will share his experience of working with Duncan McNab and the development of a regionally distinct West Coast Modern architecture.

Photo: McNab Residence 1956, taken by urbanpictures.com, 2007

Native Plant Gardening Workshop

British Columbia is home to a vast array of native plants, some with beautiful blooms, others with luscious berries, and some that provide food for butterflies and hummingbirds. Whether you are looking for a perennial, annual, grass, fern, tree or shrub, there are lots of home-grown choices to add beauty and diversity to your garden and, at the same time, help make your home "greener". Come find out more about the benefits of gardening with native plants and about the plants themselves.

The instructor of this workshop Dawn Hanna first became enamoured with native plants when hiking the islands, grasslands and mountains of BC. She heads two stewardship initiatives (at Vancouver's Jericho Park and Richmond's Lona Beach Regional Park) whose aim is, in part, to restore native plants to parks overrun with introduced, invasive plant species. Dawn is currently pursuing graduate work in restoration ecology at the University of Victoria.


on Saturday March 22 from 1:30 to 3:00 pm
at the West Vancouver Museum

Program code: 426067, $ 10 per person
Call 604-925-7270 to Register


Photo: Nootka rose, Dawn Hanna Photo.

Exhibition Opening March 4th at 7pm

Modern In Sight
The Architecture of Duncan McNab
Exhibition runs from March 4 to May 31, 2008

Please join us for the opening reception

Tuesday, March 4, 2008 from 7 to 9 pm

Duncan McNab’s architecture exhibits a deceptive clarity and simplicity achieved through rigorous attention to site, materials and function. Inspired by European Modernism, he developed his own distinctive style by being responsive to both geography and climate. The West Vancouver post-and-beam home he designed for his family in1956 clings to a rocky outcropping with floor to ceiling windows framing a spectacular view. McNab’s career paralleled the baby boom and the growing need for both affordable single family homes and schools. McNab’s office designed numerous elementary and secondary schools, was a finalist in the competition to design Simon Fraser University and, among many other notable projects, designed Raymur Place housing project in Strathcona.


Photo: McNab Residence, D. McNab architect, 1956. Photo courtesy of Selwyn Pullan.

West Vancouver Museum Spirit Week Special Event

The West Vancouver Museum is pleased to announce additional programs on international conflict and consequence of war in conjunction with its compelling exhibition Behind the Wire: The Wartime Diary and Art of Robert Buckham. To mark the final day of this exhibition and the start of Spirit Week, the Museum is screening Forced March to Freedom, a documentary film illustrating the experiences of Canadian air personnel imprisoned in German PoW camps during the Second World War. Following the screening, Peter Stursberg, a well-known Canadian writer and broadcaster who reported for CBC Radio from the front lines in Italy and France during WWII, and Joel Melanson, Logistician with Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres, provide insight into the global conflict, both past and present.

Admission to these programs is by donation, with all proceeds being given to humanitarian aid organizations.

Saturday, February 9, 2008
10:00am
Documentary Film Screening of Forced March to Freedom
Paperny Films, 2001
Forced March to Freedom documents the little known but harrowing experiences of 10,000 PoWs forced to march through Germany in the dead of winter by the Luftwaffe fleeing the Russian advance in the final desperate months of WWII. This incredible and moving film is based on the diaries and artwork of RCAF Flight-Lieutenant Robert Buckham who was shot down over Germany and imprisoned in the infamous prisoner-of-war camp Stalag Luft III. This is your last chance to see this important film in conjunction with the exhibition of original drawings on loan from the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa.

11:30am
Peter Stursberg: Memoirs of a War Correspondent
We are extremely pleased to have writer-broadcaster and author Peter Stursberg share his wartime experiences as a correspondent for CBC Radio during WWII. He was later a broadcaster with United Nations and a member of the Parliamentary Press Gallery in Ottawa. He is a Member of the Order of Canada and has written several biographies and history books on Diefenbaker, Lester Pearson and his own experiences.

1:30pm
Medecins Sans Frontieres: An Engineer’s Role in Disaster and Conflict Zones
Please join special guest Joel Melanson, Logistician with Doctors Without Boarders who will speak about an engineers role in offering aid and hope to people whose lives have been impacted by war and disaster.

Cabins and Cabin Communities on the North Shore Mountains

Hollyburn Ridge is a mountainous area of West Vancouver, between the Capilano River and Cypress Provincial Park. After the cessation of logging in the earlier parts of the twentieth century, many cabins were built on the Ridge - often constructed from materials left over from discontinued logging operations. During the 1930s and 1940s several hundred cabins were constructed on land leased from the Corporation of the District of West Vancouver. Cabins such as Holler Inn (at top [C236A WVA HRC]) and Swanson's Doghouse (at bottom [C247 WVA HRC]) soon became part of the unique community devoted to outdoor recreation and cabin life.

Donald Grant, archivist historian for the Hollyburn Heritage Society and the Hollyburn Ridge Association, will review the history of cabin building on the North Shore mountains and discuss current issues related to owning and maintaining cabins on Hollyburn at the West Vancouver Museum on Saturday February 16, 2008 from 1:30 to 3:00 pm. Admission is by donation.

Photo credits:
West Vancouver Archives photograph (C236A WVA HRC): Cabin Site Number 236. West Vancouver Archives collection [ca. 1982-1987]. Photo by Les Finta.
West Vancouver Archives photograph (C247 WVA HRC): Cabin Site Number 247. West Vancouver Archives collection [ca. 1982-1987]. Photo by Les Finta.

Cancelled Due to Weather

Due to the inclement weather conditions, the talk scheduled this evening (Jan. 30) by Professor Benjamin Perrin has been cancelled. Stay tuned for updates.

Holiday Schedule

The West Vancouver Museum will be open until 5 pm on Saturday December 22, 2007 and will re-open at 11am on Thursday January 3, 2008.

Season's Greetings from Staff at the West Vancouver Museum!

Hollyburn Lodge Cards

Three photographs (featured here) from the Hollyburn Heritage Society Collection have been reproduced as cards by the District of West Vancouver to raise awareness of the Hollyburn Lodge Restoration Project. This project represents many of our community's values, such as our commitment to the natural environment and to sustainably, and to our culture of outdoor recreation. The lodge restoration also provides an opportunity for us to rediscover and share our history, showcase our mountain environment, and guarantee that future generations will continue to experience this unique West Vancouver landmark. The restoration of the Hollyburn lodge is one of our Olympic Legacy projects.

These cards are available at the Museum Gift Shop.

$ 2 for one card and $ 5 for three cards.

Photos from Top to Bottom

West Vancouver Archives photo(0866 WVA HHS OOMM): Near the Hollyburn Pacific Ski Camp, Hollyburn Heritage Society collection, Ommund Ommundsen series, [192-]. Photo by Rudolph Verne and Oscar Pearson.

West Vancouver Archives photo (0746 WVA HHS BUR): Skiers on Hollyburn Mountain, Hollyburn Heritage Society collection, Fred Burfield series, [194-].

West Vancouver Archives photo (1045D WVA HHS KAL): Skiers on the peak of Hollyburn, Hollyburn Heritage Society collection, Nordal Kaldahl series, [193-].

Born and Raised in War in Sudan

Next Talk at the West Vancouver Museum
Wednesday December 5, 2007 from 7pm
Guest Speaker: Charles O. Lomudak

Charles O. Lomudak is a volunteer for UNICEF Canada and works as a settlement worker for Vancouver School Board. He will talk about his personal account of growing up in Sudan during the ongoing civil war.
Please read the article below from The Vancouver Sun, May 15, 2007


Paula Lomudak (centre) is reunited in Surrey with sons Charles (rear right) and Joseph (far right) and cousins Joseph, Mary, Johnson and Josephine.
Photograph by : Peter Battistoni, Vancouver Sun

Mother's Day sees Sudanese family reunited after 14 years
Son who fled when he was 12 worked to bring mother to B.C. from refugee camp

Doug Ward
Vancouver Sun
Tuesday, May 15, 2007

CREDIT: Peter Battistoni, Vancouver Sun


A 62-year-old woman from Sudan walked off an airplane at Vancouver International Airport recently and embraced a son she had not lived with since a prolonged civil war sent him into exile two decades ago.
She had spent the last 14 years in refugee camps and had nearly given up hope that her family would ever be together again.
The son, Charles Lomudak, now 35, greeted his mother with a banner that read: "Welcome to Canada Mom. We Love You."
After 21 years, the family was finally reunited.
His mother, Paula Lomudak, has been granted permanent residency in Canada and is living with her son, who sponsored her, in Surrey. They celebrated Mother's Day with more joy than most.
"Back home we don't celebrate Mother's Day. But of all Canadians, I am getting perhaps the best Mother's Day," said Charles Lomudak.
The Lomudak family is a victim of the long civil war that began in southern Sudan in 1983 as the Islamic government in the country's north battled rebels in the mostly non-Muslim south.
War and famine led to the displacement of more than four million people. An estimated two million people died in over two decades of fighting.
Among the members of this Sudanese diaspora was Charles Lomudak who fled his family's small village in southern Sudan in 1986.
Lomudak was a 12-year-old student at the time and feared that he would be abducted by the rebels and forced to be a boy-soldier.
"I had a close friend who was taken away to become a rebel soldier. There are thousands of these boys now in North America. They are called the Lost Boys of Sudan."
Lomudak and his brother hid in the bush during the day and at night would sneak back into town for food.
They kept moving south, away from the fighting. "I saw people shot, I saw people lying on the ground dead. But we just kept running."
Eventually, they arrived in a town near the Ugandan border where an uncle lived. He remained there for three years, until 1989 when the civil war spread further south, forcing Lomudak to leave again -- this time to refugee camps in Uganda.
He was nearly killed in the camps when a group of soldiers tied him up and beat him repeatedly with a dry stick. "I thought I was going to die. I had a swollen back and arms. I lost my voice. They beat me to the point where I couldn't cry anymore."
Finally, Lomudak and a group of other refugees were taken to the airport and flown back to Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, where they were placed in camps for internally displaced people. He resisted orders to return to the south of the country and remained in Khartoum to complete his high school education.
Lomudak decided to go to Ethiopia and attend a college run by the Seventh Day Adventist Church, to which he belonged.
He remained at the school in Ethiopia for five years and during all that time he had no contact with his mother or the rest of his family.
Lomudak put in a request for information about his family with the Red Cross and about four months later learned that they were in refugee camps in Uganda.
After completing college in Ethiopia, Lomudak's future was again on hold. He applied for refugee status in Canada in 1995 and a year later arrived in Vancouver. He quickly found work at a warehouse in Annacis Island and began sending money back to his family in Uganda.
Later he attended Langara College, studied social work and began working in foster homes. Eventually, he found full-time work with the Vancouver school board as a special education assistant and now works at Lord Beaconsfield elementary in East Vancouver.


© The Vancouver Sun 2007

Behind the Wire Guest Speakers Series

Behind the Wire Programs

Get Informed!

A number of special Behind the Wire public programs are scheduled in conjunction with the exhibition. Distinguished scholars, humanitarians, survivors of war and experts in their fields offer a series of talks on issues related to international conflicts and consequences of war. Stay tuned for more talks currently being scheduled for January and February 2008.

November 7, 2007, 7-9pm
Behind the Wire Exhibit Opening and Reception
Special Guest: Katy Hedalen performs We’ll Meet Again

We’ll Meet Again, composed by Ross Parker and lyrics by Hughie Charles was popularized by British singer Vera Lynn during World War II. The song resonated with soldiers who were going off to war leaving their loved ones behind. West Vancouver soprano singer Katy Hedalen sings We’ll Meet Again as a special tribute to those who served and dedicated their lives.

November 14, 7-8:30pm
Guest speaker: Major Harjit Sajjan, Reservist, British Columbia Regiment, Reconnaissance Squadron
Topic: The Canadian Forces in Afghanistan Protecting Canadians-Rebuilding Afghanistan

Major Harjit Saijan, a Reservist with the British Columbia Regiment where he is Officer Commanding, Reconnaissance Squadron, served in Afghanistan in 2006 under Brigadier General David Fraser, Commander of the Multi-National Brigade. Major Sajjan shares his personal experiences and discusses the Canadian Forces contribution in Afghanistan.

November 21, 7-8:30pm
Guest speaker: Lauryn Oates, Vice-President, Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan
Topic: Women and War in Afghanistan

Lauryn Oates is a professional human rights advocate and international development practitioner, with expertise in gender and women’s human rights. Since 1996, Oates has worked as an activist for women's rights in Afghanistan as founder of the Vancouver and Montreal Chapters of the non-profit solidarity network, Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan. She managed the CIDA-funded Women's Rights in Afghanistan Fund and other projects supporting women's movements and peace building in the Middle East and Central Asia from 2002-2006 at the International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development. Her talk focuses on how the ongoing war in Afghanistan has affected the lives of Afghan women.

November 27, 7pm at the West Vancouver Memorial Library (1950 Marine Drive, West Vancouver)
Special guest: David Paperny, President, Paperny Films
Documentary Screening of Forced March to Freedom, Paperny Films, 2001

David Paperny’s documentary film Forced March to Freedom, is based on a book of the same name written and illustrated by Robert Buckham. The film illustrates the experiences of Canadian air personnel imprisoned in German PoW camps during World War II.

At the end of the Second World War, ten thousand prisoners of war anticipated liberation courtesy the advancing Russian Red Army. The retreating Germans forced the prisoners to march out of Stalag Luft III in the dead of winter toward the center of a collapsing Third Reich in order to keep the PoW’s as hostages. Forced March to Freedom tells the story of this amazing test of endurance through the eyes of Robert Buckham, a bomber pilot and artist who produced countless sketches and watercolours of prison camp life, as well as one of the only chronicles of the forced march itself. Interviews with Buckham and other PoW's accentuate the sketches of camp life and the march as well as the few actual photographs of the march known to exist. The film producer David Paperny gives you the inside account of making the documentary film.

November 28, 7-8:30pm
Guest speaker: Brian Seward, MMM.CD, Rtd., 6 Field Engineer Squadron
Topic: Close to Home: Peace Keeping Missions Abroad

Brian L. Seward came to Canada after serving in the Royal Navy and Merchant Navy from 1944 to 1955. He joined the 6th Field Engineers Squadron in North Vancouver in 1962 as a Sapper and served 28 years in all ranks up to Sergeant-Major and Captain. Served in NATO (Germany) in 1972, he attended numerous joint exercises with the US 407th Engineers, building bridges, repairing roads and removing explosives. Seward was awarded the Order of Military Merit for his dedicated and exceptional service by Governor General Edward Schreyer in Ottawa 1980.

December 5, 7-8:30pm
Guest speaker: Charles O. Lomudak, Settlement Worker, Vancouver School Board; Volunteer, UNICEF Canada
Topic: Born and Raised in War in Sudan

Since 1983, the ongoing civil war in Sudan caused the death of nearly two million people-one in five of the southern Sudanese population. When the war broke out, Charles Lomudak was only 10 years old. As the war intensified, homes were burned down, many Sudanese were repeatedly tortured, and thousands of boys were forced to become red army soldiers by the rebels. Lomudak and his family hid in bushes during the day, barely keeping themselves alive by eating wild plants and fruits, and traveled after dark moving away from the fighting. He spent several years in refugee camps in neighbouring countries, lost two brothers due to the war and was recently reunited with his mother after 21 years of separation. In this talk, Lomudak gives his personal account of growing up in Sudan where he endured unimaginable brutality.

January 16, 2008, 7-8:30pm
Guest speaker: Jenny Peterson, Postdoctoral Teaching Fellow, Political Science Department, University of British Columbia
Topic: Rebuilding Kosovo: The Pros and Cons of Eight Years of International Intervention

Jenny Peterson is a Post-Doctoral fellow at the University of British Columbia where she teaches courses related to political violence. Her research, which focuses on 'war economies' and peace-building initiatives in post conflict states, took her to Kosovo in 2005 and 2006 where she lived and conducted research on the difficulties of rebuilding and preparing the territory for its as of yet unknown future.

January 30, 2008, 7-8:30pm
Guest speaker: Benjamin Perrin, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law, University of British Columbia
Topic: Prosecuting Nazi War Criminals: Examining the Foundation of Modern War Crimes Trials

Benjamin Perrin is an Assistant Professor at the UBC Faculty of Law, and is a Faculty Associate at the Liu Institute for Global Issues. His teaching and research interests include domestic and international criminal law, international humanitarian law, comparative constitutional law and human trafficking. Professor Perrin has advised judges at modern war crimes tribunals, including the Special Court for Sierra Leone and the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague. He will discuss the legacy of the post-World War II war crimes tribunals and their contribution to modern efforts to bring war criminals to justice in countries like Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Cambodia and the former Yugoslavia.


Admission to the Behind the Wire Speaker Series is by donation. All proceeds made through these programs will be donated to charities in support of humanitarian activities.

Photo: Lauryn Oates of Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan

Photo courtesy of Lauryn Oates

The West Vancouver Museum thanks the financial support of Mercedes-Benz and North Shore News for this exhibition and Speaker Series.

New Exhibition Opening

Behind the Wire

The Wartime Diary and Art of Robert Buckham

Please join us for the Opening Reception

on November 7, 2007 from 7 to 9pm.

Special guest Katy Hedalen, Vocalist, performs We'll Meet Again.

The financial support of Mercedes-Benz for this exhibition is gratefully acknowledged. We thank the British Pacific Properties for supporting the opening reception.

Behind the Wire: The Wartime Diary and Art of Robert Buckham

(WEST VANCOUVER, B.C.) – Opening November 7, 2007 and running through to February 9, 2008, the West Vancouver Museum presents BEHIND THE WIRE: THE WARTIME DIARY AND ART OF ROBERT BUCKHAM. The exhibition features evocative illustrations of WWII from artist Robert Buckham’s prisoner of war diary, journal and artwork. Also included are illustrations and paintings the artist produced after the war.

On his tenth bombing sortie over Germany on April 8, 1943, Captain Robert Buckham and the crew of his Wellington MK.III bomber were downed near Dusseldorf. Miraculously, the entire crew survived. Buckham was captured and imprisoned in the infamous prisoner of war camp Stalag Luft III in Sagan, Germany. In his illustrated war time diaries, Buckham recorded his internment, the trials of day to day existence, the failed “great escape” popularized by the Hollywood movie and his eventual “forced march to freedom” through one of Europe’s coldest winters.

Buckham concealed his precious diary and drawings in old milk cans in order to protect them during the months he and over 10, 000 other PoWs endured a forced march in the dead of winter westward through Germany in front of the Russian advance. Those who survived were eventually liberated and in 1945, Buckham returned to Canada to resume his career as an illustrator and artist. His drawings of Canada’s countryside and cityscapes graced the pages of the Globe and Mail for many years. His art was inspired by nature and local landscapes, as well as his frequent travels.

A VIEW THROUGH TREES

West Vancouver has been blessed with magnificent natural surroundings. Above all, it is the forest that has shaped the community’s history that colours its present and challenges its future.

Saturday November 17, 1:30-3pm
Please join Elspeth Bradbury, the author of recently published book West Vancouver: A View Through the Trees, who will describe the relationship between plants and people through 10,000 years of co-evolution.

Admission for this talk is by donation

Registration is not required for this talk, but limited space is available for seating. Author’s autographed copies of the book are available for purchase. All proceeds from the book will be donated to the Lighthouse Park Preservation Society.

Graphic: Drawing of Western redcedar by Elspeth Bradbury, 2007

Halloween Festivities

Welcome to the Haunted Museum
Halloween exhibition on display at the Museum from October 13-31, 2007

Why do we carve pumpkins, trick or treat, and bob for apples?
Find the answers to these and other creepy questions at the West Vancouver Museum this Halloween. Explore Halloween throughout the ages, from Celtic rituals and traditions to pop culture ghouls and legends.

Make boo-goo and other potions in our mad wizard laboratory. Other activities include ghost paintings, pasta skeletons, and monster crafts. Spooky stories from our own region (but not too spooky) and insight into local customs practiced on Halloween, topped off with a treasure hunt through the Museum.

Halloween Programs for children

October 20 10 - 12 pm for age 6-8 Program # 425924

October 20 1 - 3 pm for age 9-11 Program # 425925

October 27 10 - 12 pm for age 9-11 Program # 425926

October 27 1 - 3 pm for age 9-11 Program # 425927


Call 604-925-7270 to Register

photo: West Vancouver Museum

Where the Fraser Lowlands Meet

Geology Tour

Join Geologist David Cook on a guided bus tour along the northern margin of the Fraser River lowlands. We will stop at many sites along the route to view geological and glacial features. Learn how the present landscape was formed by the forces of plate tectonics, ice, and water.

This is an all-day event, so be sure to bring lunch and water. Wear good walking shoes, as there is a half hour hike along a well-groomed trail at one stop.

For more details, contact the West Vancouver Museum at 604-925-7179.

Saturday, September 22 9 am to 5 pm
Program Code 426467 $ 40 per person
The tour bus leaves from the Museum at 9 am

Call 604-925-7270 to Register

Picture: Sea to Sky Geology Tour offered by the Museum in Spring 2007.
WVM photo, 2007

Upcoming Exhibit

THE BLACK SLIP:

The Painting of Jane Billaux

September 15 - October 27, 2007

Opening Reception: September 15, 4:00 - 6:00 p.m.

Opening at the West Vancouver Museum on September 15, The Black Slip: The Painting of Jane Billaux is a recent acquisitions exhibition, featuring the work of artist Jane Billaux. Though born and raised in London, England, Billaux has strong ties to West Vancouver. She immigrated to Canada from England in 1934 with her husband, Hugh Clifford, and their young daughter.

Over the span of forty years, Billaux painted pictures evocative of both the times in which she lived and the artist’s solitary practice. Almost immediately, Billaux began exhibiting widely and prolifically in both Canada and the United States. Her work was consistently well received. Indeed, she won the Beatrice Stone Medal at the Vancouver Art Gallery’s Annual B.C. Artists’ Exhibition twice, in 1939 and 1942.

The title of the exhibition alludes to an early self-portrait Women in the Mirror where the artist portrays herself in a black slip. Playfully posed before a full-length mirror, Billaux appears self-assured, every bit the young bohemian moving within London’s avant-garde circles. The painting palpitates with the artist’s quiet fearlessness, a combination of courage and conviction that would take her halfway across the world to follow her passion for painting.

Billaux painted slowly, carefully and, thus, left a small body of work. However, in this instance, quantity should not be confused with quality; what we are left with is remarkable in its clarity.

A short presentation about Jane Billaux and local landscape will take place prior to the opening reception from 3:15pm. For more information about the talk, please read the posting called Binning and Billaux: A Place In Art History.

Above image: Women in Mirror, c. 1929, oil on canvas. Image courtesy of urbanpictures.com

Binning and Billaux: A Place in Art History

West Vancouver is home to numerous artists drawn to its spectacular landscape and proximity to both the mountains and ocean. B.C. Binning, a key figure of modernism on the West Coast of Canada, created numerous lyrical drawings inspired by landscapes and scenes. Jane Billaux, who moved to Canada from England in the 1930’s painted local people and places over her long career.

On Saturday September 15th, join Museum staff and learn how landscape inspired these two artists:

• 1pm Talk and Guided Bus Tour on Binning and local landscape ($ 10 per person)


• 3:15pm Talk on Jane Billaux (admission by donation)


• 4-6pm Opening reception of The Black Slip: The Painting of Jane Billaux

Please contact the Museum at 604-925-7295 for Talk and Guided Bus Tour on Binning and local landscape. Limited number of tickets for this talk is sold in advance.

Image: Painting by Jane Billaux. Urbanpictures.com photo.

Wearing Traditions, Well Attended

Wearing Traditions took place at the West Vancouver Museum on August 12 as part of the Harmony Arts Festival. The event was a huge success, attracting many people from the community of West Vancouver. Those in attendance had the rare opportunity of enjoying the rich traditions of the local First Nations people through traditional dance, contemporary fashion and art.

"Wearing Traidtions: fantastic event, very interesting and informative. And a well-thought out, very well-presented accompanying exhibit. I really appreciate the point of view from which the history and life of this culture [Squamish/Coast Salish Nation] is presented, preserving its integrity and honour. Thoroughly enjoyed it." -- anonymous, comment book.

William Nahanee drums a legend to life.

Members of the Sna7em dance group transform into eagles during a dance.

The public is invited to join.



Pam Baker's models take a walk down the red carpet runway. Her company "Touch of Culture" centres on the principle of providing people with the opportunity to explore how modern style can be combined with traditional symbols.

Tracy Williams (Sesemiya) enlightens the crowd on the time-honoured tradition of basket weaving.

Rick Harry (Xwa lack tun) talks about the 30 foot long dugout canoe that he carved together with his friends and family.

West Vancouver Museum finds itself in the North Shore News

Traditional Designs

Diana Szpotowicz, North Shore News
Published: Friday, August 10, 2007

WHEN creating her clothing, Tracy Williams doesn't use typical materials such as cotton, Lycra, or nylon.

Instead, she uses cedar bark and duck down to create traditional First Nations pieces.

Sesemiya (her First Nations name) is part of the Squamish Nation and thinks it's important to create traditional clothing so that those skills can be passed on to future generations. She has also practised basket weaving for about 11 years.

"Some of the clothing I create is made out of cedar bark," explains Williams. "You have to gather it in the springtime and then let it dry for about a year, and that gets all of the water and moisture out. Then once you've dried it for a year, you have to take the time to pound it to make it soft and pliable and then you can weave it together."

One of the pieces that Williams has made is a traditional cape with duck down, wool and cedar all woven together. The cape also has an accompanying woven headband adorned with white wool, and a belt made out of yellow cedar that is twisted together to make a strong rope, with shells hanging down for decoration. Williams says that so far she has made one cape.

"It's a lot of work," she says. "It takes probably about 30 hours just to pound the cedar bark. It's not something that you would make a hundred of. I've made other types of cedar bark capes with a beaver pelt. It keeps you warm and is soft and adds to the cape itself."

Williams says she likes to work with mostly traditional types of materials. "That's why we're using the duck down and the beaver pelt. I find there's a lot of power and strength in those materials."

Williams also creates traditional hats for both men and women such as a rounded one that is classically Coast Salish. She also finds creative ways to incorporate new designs such as a star design from one of her grandmother's baskets.

"A lot of times I'll use a lot of different materials," she explains, "maybe red cedar, maybe yellow cedar, bear grass, dyed colours. A lot of times I'll adorn it with eagle feathers or a little bit of leather."

Williams says her hats are perfect for dancing, for ceremonial purposes, and are used for spiritual protection. Williams has taken lessons from many teachers and in turn teaches her own children her skills. She takes them to gather the cedar with her "so the kids will grow up with it, knowing it all their lives," she says.

Williams will give a cedar bark weaving demonstration on Sunday, Aug. 12, at the West Vancouver Museum, from 3 to 5 p.m., as part of the Harmony Arts Festival.

"I'm really looking forward to having an opportunity to share with all sorts of people who are interested in basketry, in weaving, in traditional materials, in our traditional Squamish culture," she says.

Image above courtesy of North Shore News.

Wearing Traditions

Ets7utsis telh tim’á-chet

EXPERIENCE THE LOCAL CULTURE AND ART

AT THE WEST VANCOUVER MUSEUM

Sunday August 12, 11-5 pm

The West Vancouver Museum, in partnership with the Squamish Nation, is offering a rare opportunity for the public to enjoy the rich clothing traditions of the local First Nations people through traditional dance, contemporary fashion and art. This special Harmony Arts Festival event at the West Vancouver Museum on Sunday August 12th will include Sna7em dance group’s cultural performance, aboriginal designer Pam Baker’s fashion show, and weaving demonstration by Squamish artists Tracy Williams and Keith Nahanee.

Stitúyntm Enduring Traditions Exhibition
11am-5pm
The West Vancouver Museum invites you to explore Enduring Traditions and experience the artistic expression of the Squamish people who utilize unique design elements and composition to create striking masterworks. This exhibition brings together historic and contemporary objects and images from both private and museum collections, offering an opportunity to appreciate treasured objects on public display for the first time.

Dance Performance by Sna7em
1 pm
The Sna7em dance group of the Skxwe7mesh Nation brings Squamish family histories, songs, legends and dances to life with their energetic performances. The name Sna7em is derived from the Squamish word representing the power, strength and energy of the Thunderbird. Members of Sna7em range in age from 4 to 65 and perform dances handed down through the generations. The Sna7em dance group provides a glimpse into their culture through singing, drumming and dancing.

Fashion Show by Pam Baker
2 pm
First Nations fashion designer Pam Baker blends traditional aboriginal designs into her contemporary clothing. Her company “Touch of Culture” centres on the principle of providing people with the opportunity to explore how modern style can be combined with traditional symbols. A fashion show of Pam Baker’s design will be accompanied by drumming and singing by William Nahanee of the Squamish Nation.

Cedar-bark Weaving Demonstration by Tracy Williams
3-5pm
Tracy Williams (Sesemiya) of the Squamish Nation is an accomplished weaver who learned basket weaving from her grandmother and many other First Nations people along the Northwest Coast. Tracy says “I feel very honoured to carry on the teachings of our Ancestors and love to spend time harvesting Cedar, digging for roots, and creating clothing, hats, and basketry. My greatest accomplishment will be to ensure that my children learn how to weave, so that this knowledge will survive and thrive for many generations to follow.”

Blanket Weaving Demonstration by Keith Nahanee
3-5pm
Weaving continues to hold both symbolic and artistic value among the First Nations people and beyond. Squamish artist Keith Nahanee, who taught himself how to carve and weave, will demonstrate his skills in the art of Salish blanket weaving and share his passion in weaving. His creativity and respect for ancestors show through in his sophisticated weaving designs. Keith says “Everything I do, I am meant to do it. I was meant to carve and weave. I carry on what my ancestors did. I believe everything is intended.”

Do not miss this special afternoon event at the West Vancouver Museum and discover the traditions behind the celebrated art, dance, and fashion of the Coast Salish First Nations people.

We gratefully acknowledge the support of Odlum Brown, Penny Mitchell of RE/MAX Masters Realty of West Vancouver and the North Shore News for this event.

Thanks to our sponsors, admission to the Wearing Traditions event is free.

Please note: the event date changed from July 28 to August 12.

Top photo: Pam Baker's design showing paddles

Middle image: Pam Baker's conceptual drawing

Bottom photo: Bullrush Gathering, 2006 Tracy Williams

Community Cultural Crawl

BC Cultural Crawl
August 3rd to 31st, 2007

The BC Cultural Crawl is a celebration of the arts, culture & heritage in communities across the province. This month-long Cultural crawl offers tremendous exposure to the vast number of artisans scattered in unique and unexplored corners of our province.

For more information visit http://www.art-bc.com/

JAPANESE TEA CEREMONY

at the West Vancouver Museum

This summer, Sachi Rummel, an experienced Japanese tea ceremony practioner, who studied under the master of the Enshuryu School in Japan, offers Cha no yu or Japanese tea in the Musuem's garden. While serving you a cup of Matcha tea, Sachi will explain the philosophy behind the Japanese tradition. Come and enjoy spiritual enrichment and attain peaceful harmony.

Sachi Rummel moved from Tokyo, Japan to Canada in 1975 and worked as a cultural advisor at Langara College for 15 years. She has hosted numerous tea ceremonies at various institutions, including UBC 's Asian Department, the Vancouver School Board, and North Shore Continuing Education.

Wednesday August 15, 2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Session $15.00 per participant. In case of rain, tea will be served in the Museum building.

Call (604) 925-7270 to Register

Dancing Traditions

For those who missed July 11th's summery night of traditional Scottish music and dance, here are a few photos of the night's merriment. Come visit us at the West Vancouver Museum next Wednesday, July 25 at 7:30 p.m. for the next session: Old Dances Still Popular Today. For more information or to book a spot in advance, please contact us at 604-925-7295.

Stitúyntm Enduring Traditions, Reviewed by Simon Fraser University's Student Newspaper, The Peak

Bridging the divide

Contemporary Squamish and Coast Salish art exhibit makes us reconsider the meaning of art
Justin Mah, Associate Staff Contributor

Stitúyntm Enduring Traditions: Historic and Contemporary Squamish and Coast Salish Art is exhibited at the West Vancouver Museum (680 17th Street and Esquimalt, West Vancouver) until August 31. Admission by donation.

Having grown up in East Vancouver, when I visited West Vancouver’s quaint and entirely unpretentious cultural distric tucked away in Ambleside, I was utterly bewildered by the area’s cleanliness (finding a piece of litter was like trying to find the elusive scroll in a Where’s Waldo book). Litter deficiency aside, a visitor will find a comprehensive collection of Coast Salish art at the West Vancouver Museum and Archives. Entitled Stitúyntm Enduring Traditions: Historic and Contemporary Squamish and Coast Salish Art, this exhibit focuses on Salish art traditions — deflating the commonly held perception that the Northwest Coast is culturally homogenous.

Comprised in fact by divergent regional styles, the show endeavours to represent these subtleties to outsiders by acquainting them with the deeper significances of Coast Salish culture. For instance, unlike their Northern tribal neighbours, the Haida, who are known for their iconic totem poles, the Salish, alternatively, are recognised for their welcome posts. Vetted through the authority of the Squamish elders and co-curated by Deborah Jacobs, director of education for the Squamish Nation, it sets a precedent: the exhibit is an inclusive one, and, as such, attempts to shift the museum into an arena not only for cultural preservation, but also as a felicitous outlet for self-representation by people traditionally marginalised in museum space. “Having [Squamish and Coast Salish] history be available and to give voice to it in an exhibition like Stitúyntm Enduring Traditions is really significant for citizens to have an appreciation of [Squamish and Coast Salish life] . . . [there is] the need to coexist in a community, the need to really know our roots, and the need to have more peaceful and harmonious relationships with each other as neighbours,” says Jacobs.

Interestingly, there is no word for art in the Salish language; xal (to mark) is the closest the language comes. According to Barbara Brotherton of the Seattle Art Museum, “[xal] expresses making a mark, of altering, changing, or transforming what merely exists into something of sublime beauty and meaning.” As such, many of the items on display — from mountain-goat-wool blankets, to spindle whorls, to coiled cedar root baskets — serve a functional and/or ceremonial purpose in addition to being visually appealing. “Coast Salish art is very much interwoven within the fabric of our life,” explained Jacobs. Not only do these handcrafted works, imbued with their maker’s love, stand in sharp contrast to the machine-manufactured world, but they serve as palpable memory for the Salish whose history has been carried on through these sacred objects and the oral stories which accompany them, passed on from storyteller to storyteller, generation to generation.

Then there are more contemporary, critical pieces on display, such as Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun’s acrylic on canvas piece, Mother Earth and Child (2006), where two blue and sickly human figures, constituted of traditional forms, traverse awkwardly through an alien (ie. Western) landscape, expressing the woes of the aboriginal people with solemn urgency. Aptly described by Robert Linsley in his essay “Painting and the Social History of British Columbia,” “Paul transforms the dreamlike redemptive hope in Emily Carr’s painting into the real-life nightmare grotesque of the present, but he also offers a truth . . . that the land is inhabited by living, though suffering, human subjects, and that this is finally the root from which all hope grows.”

I have described just a few of the cultural art objects on display at the West Vancouver Museum and Archives, items which, like the exemplary abstract expressionist paintings of the ‘50s, demand that a corporeal confrontation take place between subject and object if a meaningful exchange is to ever make itself available.

For many (I am thinking of the typical SFU student), West Vancouver is perceived as some far, distant place. But like the distressingly truncated perceptions that continue to be applied to aboriginal cultures, only after we make the trek ourselves and open up to the array of cultural nuances around us, can we truly appreciate our own unique station in this multifaceted world.

(Published in The Peak July 9, 2007. 126/10)

http://www.peak.sfu.ca/the-peak/2007-2/issue10/ar-divide.html

Wearing Tradtions *Date Change*

The West Vancouver Museum's Wearing Traditions event will now be happening on Sunday August 12th. The event will include performances by Sna7em dance group, a fashion show by aboriginal designer Pam Baker, and weaving demonstrations by Squamish artists Tracy Williams and Keith Nahanee.

Exact details coming soon!

Our Tea & Tour Program is Back for Summer 2007!

YOU ARE INVITED!

Come join us for a guided museum tour and delightful afternoon tea at the Gertrude Lawson House. Walk Through the Stitúyntm Enduring Traditions: Historic and Contemporary Squamish and Coast Salish Art exhibition and enjoy tea and refreshments served in the museum garden. It is a great opportunity to learn about local aboriginal history and chat with your neighbours.

The show brings together both historic and contemporary artworks by Squamish and Coast Salish people ­– some on public display for the first time. Featuring numerous works by notable aboriginal artists – Lawrence Paul, Stan Greene, Susan R. Point and Rick Harry, just to name a few – this engaging exhibit invites you to contemplate the many forms that these artistic visions take, and to awaken your senses to the spirituality and aesthetics of Coast Salish art traditions.

Wáxayus (Salmon Chief Figure) carved by August Jack Khatsahlano. C.1920. Courtesy of the Vancouver Museum. AA687. Urbanpictures.com photo.

The guided museum tour and delightful afternoon tea will take place at The West Vancouver Museum and Archives, which is located in the historic Gertrude Lawson house (17th Street and Esquilmalt). Inspired by stone manor houses during her visit to Scotland, Gertrude Lawson – a beloved teacher and the daughter of John Lawson – designed this charming home with the hopes that it could act as a hub for social and community activity. Even in her passing, her original intent lives on with the home having become an apt setting for introducing the rich and diverse history of West Vancouver to the interested public.

Admission $10.00 Adult, $8.00 Senior/Student

We will be offering Tea and Tours on the following dates:

July 19 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m

August 10 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Call 604-925-7270 to Register

Upcoming Exhibition

BEHIND THE WIRE
The War Time Diary and Art of Robert Buckham
opens November 2007

On a bombing raid over Germany on April 8, 1943 Captain Robert Buckham and the crew of his Wellington Mk.III bomber were downed near Dusseldorf. Miraculously, the entire crew survived. Buckham was eventually captured and imprisoned in the infamous prisoner of war camp Stalag Luft III in Sagan, Germany. In his elaborately illustrated war time diaries, Buckham recorded his internment, the trials of day to day existence, the failed “great escape” popularized by the Hollywood movie and his eventual forced march to freedom through one of Europes coldest winters.

Buckham hid his treasured books in old milk cans in order to preserve them during the three months he and over 10,000 other POWs endured a forced march in the dead of winter westward through Germany in front of the Russian advance. Those that survived were eventually liberated and in 1945 Buckham returned to Canada to resume his career as an illustrator and artist. His drawings of Canada’s countryside and cityscapes graced the pages of the Globe and Mail for many years. His art was inspired by nature and local landscapes as well as frequent travels to Mexico and France.

Many of Buckham’s original war drawings are now included in the collections of the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa. The exhibition includes Buckham’s original diary and journal together with illustrations and art he produced after the war.

Credit: Illustration by Robert Buckham. Courtesy of Nancy Buckham.

Dancing Traditions

Traditional Music and Dance of Scotland

You are invited to join for an informative demonstration of Scottish Country Dancing.

May Loudon (experienced Scottish Country Dance teacher) and Angus MacKinnon (Scottish fiddler) will discuss the cultural significance of Scottish dance and fiddle music.

Each session will focus on a particular theme:

July 11 7:30pm 17th century dances

July 25 7:30pm Old dances still popular today

August 8 7:30pm 20th century revival

August 22 7:30pm Contemporary Scottish dances

Admission to these sessions is by donation.

Please call at 604-925-7295 to book your spot in advance.

May Loudon was introduced to Scottish Country Dancing in High School in Scotland. She has danced and taught on the North Shore for almost forty years and enjoyed many events around this West Coast region. Her qualifications are from The Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, and are recognised by the Scottish Education Board.

Angus MacKinnon has played Scottish music for Scottish Country Dancing Clubs throughout the United States and Canada and toured extensively with his Scottish Variety Show. He has played with Killarney at the Blarney Stone in Gastown for over twelve years.

The West Vancouver Museum was originally built by Gertrude Lawson, who hosted countless nights of Scottish dancing in her house. The main floor, made of oak, was designed to be large enough for two sets of Scottish dancers. There was a raised platform at one end for Scottish bag pipers.

Learn the ancient art of Scottish Country Dancing at the historic Gertrude Lawson House this summer!

Experience Culture through Unique Cuisine!

First Nations Cuisine

July 14, 11:30am at the West Vancouver Museum


We invite you to enjoy a unique lunch to participate in the local First Nations culture.

The gifts of nature have provided First Nations people with the nourishment they needed to survive and flourish. Salishan Catering will prepare special menu that blends Coast Salish traditional food with contemporary cuisine. You will enjoy samples of smoked salmon, bannock, wild blackberry tea, BBQ oysters, clam skewers and more!

William Nahanee of the Squamish Nation will share the teaching he received from his elders, who taught him ways of food preparation and caring for nature. William will present special songs that have been handed down to him.

Call now at 604-925-7270 to register
Program Code 387767, $ 35 per person

Top Photo: Courtesy of Coast Salishan Catering

Unique Gifts

The Museum Shop offers a diverse selection of gifts and art by local artists and books by both local and national authors on subjects related to history, architecture, art and culture.

Concurrent with Enduring Traditions, we are highlighting local First Nations jewellery and prints, as well as books on the Northwest Coast people and culture. We are offering limited edition prints by Squamish artist Aaron Nelson-Moody who has created a special new series of three images for the Museum!

Shown above are an18k gold brooch and a pendant created by renowned First Nations artist Lyle Wilson.

Value and Valuing: Northwest Coast Art Today

Next Enduring Traditions Talk
June 13, 6:30pm at the West Vancouver Museum

Value and Valuing: Northwest Coast Art Today
Guest Speaker: Karen Duffek

Recently, a Tsimshian mask sold at auction for $1.8 million. But how is this same mask valued by its originating community? This talk will take a closer look at the ways that Northwest Coast art is given value, and by whom.

Karen Duffek is the Curator of Contemporary Visual Arts at the UBC Museum of Anthropology. She has curated numerous exhibitions of contemporary and historical First Nations art, including Robert Davidson: The Abstract Edge, which recently completed its cross-Canada tour at the National Gallery of Canada. She also co-authored The Transforming Image: Painted Arts of Northwest Coast First Nations with Bill McLennan (2000 & 2007), and co-edited Bill Reid and Beyond: Expanding on Modern Native Art with Charlotte Townsend-Gault (2004).

Photo taken by Bill McLennan on Haida Gwaii, showing Haida people with their button blankets, cedar hats and drums.

Celebrate International Museum Day!

What could be a better way to celebrate International Museums Day on Friday, May 18th by visiting the West Vancouver Museum!

Pop in between 12 - 4:30 and enter a draw to win a fabulous prize!

Miniture Human Figure on display now at the West Vancouver Museum
August Jack Khatsahlano, Squamish Nation
Courtesy of the Squamish Nation.
Photo taken by Urbanpictures.com

The Home Tour date has changed

The date of West Coast Modern Home/Garden Tour and West Coast Modern Home Reception has changed from June 30 to June 16, due to unforeseen circumstances. All other details remain the same.

Do you love West Coast modern architecture and design?

The special guided tour of West Vancouver modern homes is back by popular demand!

West Coast Modern Home/Garden Tour
The tour will take you to homes built between 1940-1970, when modernism flourished in West Vancouver. Join the West Vancouver Museum Curator for a unique look at West Coast architecture, interior design and landscapes. The tour runs twice, but book early to avoid disappointment, as seats are limited.

# 387570 June 16 9:30-12pm $ 25 per person

# 387571 June 16 1:30-4pm $ 25 per person

West Coast Modern Home Reception
After attending the home tour, visit another modern home for refreshments.

# 387572 June 16 4-6 pm $ 15 per person


Call 604-925 7270 to register or visit: webreg.westvancouver.ca

Photo caption: One of the homes featured in the 2006 home tour, WVM, 2006.

Please note. The tour date has changed from June 30 to June 16, due to unforeseen circumstances. All other details remain the same.

A Contemporary Salish Vision: The Art of Xwa Lack Tun (Rick Harry)

Image of Snowboard. Artist: Xwa lack tun (Rick Harry), Squamish Nation, 2006. Photo by Urbanpictures. com

Next Enduring Traditions talk is scheduled on May 23 from 6:30pm at the Museum.

Photo of Xwa lack tun, standing in front of his sculpture, Sna7m Smánit (Spirit of the Mountain).
Photo taken by Urbanpictures.com.

Dr. Jennifer Kramer, Curator at the UBC Museum of Anthropology, will talk about Squamish artist Xwalacktun's career.

Dr. Jennifer Kramer obtained her PhD in the Department of Anthropology at Columbia University in 2003. She presently holds a joint position at the University of British Columbia as Curator of the Pacific Northwest at the Museum of Anthropology and as Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology.

Dr. Kramer's research focuses upon First Nations Northwest Coast art, past and present, as it intersects with international art markets, legal regimes, museums, cultural centres and band-run schools. She has written and taught on indigenous identity construction, the commodification of art, cultural patrimony, repatriation, tourism, cultural education and collaborative museology. Her book: Switchbacks: Art, Ownership, and Nuxalk National Identity, recently published with UBC Press in 2006, reflects upon the Nuxalk Nation's efforts to protect and pass on cultural heritage, and in this way, build contemporary identity in Bella Coola, BC. The book details the struggles and successes of Nuxalk leaders, educators and artists to produce cultural curriculum, sell Nuxalk art, repatriate cultural property, and protect the Nation from cultural appropriation.

on Shaw TV tomorrow at 6 pm

Johanna Ward from the Shaw TV Express program came to the Museum this morning to film her show. The Express airs tomorrow (April 25) at 6 pm and Johanna will introduce you our current exhibition, highlighting several historical and contemporary objects on display.

Deborah Jacobs, Director of the Squamish Nation Education Department, explains how a series of Cultural Capital programs has brought people of the Squamish Nation and West Vancouver together and built an artistic and cultural foundation from the past to the future. Xwa lack tun's sculpture, recently installed in the Ambleside Park, will also be featured.

This Express program airs the following times:

Wednesday April 25 at 6 pm and 10:30 pm

Thursday April 26 at 3 am, 6 am, 6:30 am, 8 am, 8:30 am, 10 am, 10:30 am, 2pm and 3pm.

Sunday April 29th at 1 pm and 6:30 pm

Monday April 30th at 12 midnight and 2:30 am.

Please be sure to watch one of these shows and send us your comments!

Next Enduring Traditions Talk

Come join Sharon Fortney, who will deliver a talk:
Enduring Traditions: A Look at Contemporary Coast Salish Coiled Basketry
on Wednesday May 9th at 6:30 pm at the Museum.

Local researcher Sharon Fortney will give an informal slide presentation and answer questions about the coiled cedar root basketry made by the Salish peoples of British Columbia and Washington State. The presentation will cover how these baskets are made, what they are used for, and provide advice on how to care for your personal basketry collections.

Sharon is happy to look at Coast Salish baskets belonging to audience members after the slide presentation!

DO NOT MISS this special opportunity!

Sharon Fortney has worked with, and for, several Coast Salish communities as a museum professional and contract researcher. Currently she is working on her doctorate in anthropology at the University of British Columbia, focusing on the experiences of Coast Salish communities who work with museums. Sharon has done several years of research on coiled cedar root basketry, wrote a thesis, and curated an exhibit on the topic. She has Klahoose ancestry (Northern Coast Salish) and enjoys working on cultural projects that promote the sharing of knowledge and cross-cultural understanding. She would be happy to look at Coast Salish baskets belonging to audience members after her presentation.

Photo credit:

Basket with Tumpline, courtesy of the Squamish Nation
Shopping Basket with diamond variant design
Mary Capilano, Squamish Nation, Circa 1920. Private Collection

Photos by Urban pictures.com

Northwest Coast First Nations Lecture Series

April 18th from 6:30 pm at the West Vancouver Museum ($10)

Insight / Incite:
Three First Nations Artists Working Tradition Here and Now - Marianne Nicolson, Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun and Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas




Charlotte Townsend-Gault, Associate Professor in the Department of Art History and Visual Art at the University of British Columbia, was a co-curator of Land, Spirit, Power: First Nations at the National Gallery of Canada in 1992 and has curated exhibitions of work by Yuxweluptun and Rebecca Belmore for the Belkin Gallery at UBC. She has written extensively about contemporary First Nations art, most recently ‘Rebecca Belmore and James Luna on Location at Venice: The Allegorical Indian Redux’ for the journal Art History. She is currently editing with Ron Hamilton and Jennifer Kramer, The Construction of Northwest Coast Native Art: An Anthology.

Photo credit:
Mother, Earth, and Child, Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun
2006 Acrylic on Canvas, courtesy of the Buschlen Mowatt Galleries.
Photo by Urbanpictures.com.

Enduring Traditions lecture series

photo by Urbanpictures.com

The West Vancouver Museum is hosting a series of talks on the artistic expressions and cultural traditions of the Northwest Coast First Nations. Admission is $ 10 for a talk or $ 25 for 3 talks.

April 18, 6:30 pm - Dr. Charlotte Townsend-Gault, Associate Professor, UBC Department of Art History, Visual Art and Theory

May 9, 6:30 pm - Sharon M Fortney, Guest Curator, Ph. D Candidate in Anthropology, University of British Columbia

May 23, 6:30 pm - Dr. Jennifer Kramer, Curator of the Pacific Northwest, UBC Museum of Anthropology; Assistant Professor, UBC Department of Anthropology

June 13, 6:30 pm - Karen Duffek, Curator Pacific Northwest & Contemporary Visual Arts, UBC Museum of Anthropology

July 4, 6:30 pm - Aaron Nelson-Moody, Artist, Squamish Nation

For more information please call 604- 925- 7295.

Stitúyntm Enduring Traditions
March 20th - August 31st, 2007
Opening Reception March 20th, 7 - 9 pm
West Vancouver Museum
680 17th Street, West Vancouver

Enduring Traditions explores the artistic expression of the Squamish people who utilize unique Coast Salish design elements
and composition to create striking masterworks. This exhibition brings together historic and contemporary objects and images
from both private and museum collections, offering an opportunity to appreciate treasured objects on public display for the first time.

Spring Break

Did you know that the Museum offers spring camps encouraging children to enhance their creative, academic and social skills? Through historical interpretation, visual art projects and community exploration, children will have a chance to explore the world around them-their neighbourhood and beyond-from the past, present and future perspectives.

Spring Break Art Camps

Be Creative!
Spend the week seeing and making art. Activities include heritage crafts, toy making and old fashioned fun.

March 12-16 1-4:30pm 10-12 years old
program code 358917 $ 125
March 19-23 1-4:30pm 6-9 years old
program code 351184 $ 125

To register, quote the program code listed above and choose one of the followings:

TeleReg: 604 925 7475
WebReg: www.westvancouver.net/webreg
Call center: 604 925 7270

Isaac Vanderhorst, the Education Coordinator at the West Vancouver Museum, will be offering the spring break camps. Finding innovative ways to make history and art fun and intriguing for his audiences has been the main focus of Isaac's work. By using a variety of media, Isaac makes his presentations come to life and creates a newfound interest in art and history.

Hollyburn and Westlake lodges

The trails around Hollyburn and Westlake lodges on Hollyburn Mountain have attracted winter sports enthusiasts for over 70 years. In the early days, this winter paradise offered adventurous visitors willing to climb its steep slopes a variety of activities, including cross-country sking, snow shoeing and for the real risk taker, ski jumping!

Ski Jumper on the West Lake Hill. C. 1935 (31.123.WVA HRC)

Heritage Talks at the Museum
Topic: Hollyburn Ski Lodge, February 10, 1:30pm

Topic: Westlake Lodge, March 24, 1:30 pm

A group of hikers approaches West Lake Lodge C. 1935 (31.027.WVA.HRC)

Hollyburn Ridge Cross-Country Ski Heritage Tour
A cross-country ski tour of the Hollyburn Ridge area will be delivered by Donald on February 17th from 9 am. Please register in advance ($ 20 adult, $ 18 Senior) by calling the TeleReg (604 925 7475) or the Rec Center (604 925 7270) or visiting WebReg (webreg.westvancouver.ca). The program code for this tour is 351183. Participants, who will need to bring their own skiing gear, should be reasonably fit and be comfortable on intermediate level cross-country ski trails. Donald will meet you beside the Nordic Cafe near the cross-country parking.

Artist Talk--Winston Elliott

Please join Winston Elliott for an Artist Talk on January 31 from 6:30 pm at the Museum.


The artist will share stories behind his portraits and illustrations and the inspiration behind the design of his commercial art.

What a great turn out!

It was exciting to see such a big crowd of people at the opening reception of our new exhibition. Winston Elliott: Capturing the Likeness opened at the Museum on Tuesday evening with a great turn out of over 150 people!



Here are some of the comments left by those came to see the exhibit.

Portraits deeper than photographs.

What a wonderful collection of a distinguished cause.

Congratulations on finding talents in your neighbourhood!

Incredible work of art!



I am blown away--don't even know what to write. I appreciate seeing all this so much.

Thank you Winston for sharing your great works with us.

New Exhibition

Winston Elliott
Capturing the Likeness
November 7th, 2006 – February 17th, 2007



Opening reception on November 7th
from 7 to 9 pm.

In a career spanning over sixty years, Winston Elliott produced a legacy of portraits, paintings and illustrations. Captured in his evocative renderings is the spirit of the subjects he portrayed in the decades between World War II and the present day. At the age of nineteen, Elliott enlisted as a stoker in the Canadian Navy, drawing portraits of his shipmates in his spare time. His exceptional talent in portraiture advanced his artistic career and he was provided with his own studio in the Naval Art Section in Ottawa. Elliott was assigned to paint decorated naval heroes and worked alongside official war artist and mentor Grant Macdonald.

After the war he studied at the Ontario College of Art, graduating in 1948, and then moved to Alberta where his works were first exhibited. Elliott has resided in West Vancouver since 1957, where he pursued a successful career as a commercial illustrator and continued to evolve as a painter. During his career Elliott designed logos for the Canadian Football League and advertisements for both local and national businesses. Although his works have been shown in galleries and are represented in collections across Canada, this exhibit is his first retrospective.



The financial support of Mercedes-Benz for this exhibition is gratefully acknowledged.

Howl-O-Ween

Howl-O-Ween crafts and games

October 28, 1-3 pm for children 6-8 years old
Program code 351018, fee, $ 30 includes all materials

October 28, 5-7 pm for children 9-11 years old
Program code 351020, fee $ 30 includes all materials

To register, please call 604 925 7270 or visit webreg.westvancouver.ca

Where did we get this celebration called Hallowe'en?

Come see the special Halloween exhibition, The Haunted Museum open from October 13-31st, 12-6pm at the West Vancouver Museum!

The farther we have gotten from the magic and mystery of our past, the more we seem to need a connection to the culture of Hallowe’en. It is a festival of fantasy, a celebration of otherness, the one time each year when the mundane is overturned in favour of the bizarre, and anyone can become anyone or anything they wish. At its core, Hallowe’en is a chance to confront our most primal fear -- death -- and attempt to control it or, at the very least, mock it. Ancient beliefs, religious meanings, and a multitude of ethnic influences on popular culture have combined to continually make Hallowe’en a booming commercial industry, as well as a beloved holiday.

Through artefacts, old newspaper clippings and multi-media presentations let us take you on a journey back through the story of one of the oldest holidays. As it is the second most popular holiday to Christmas in North America, millions celebrate the holiday each year - maybe without even knowing its origins. Some view Hallowe’en as a time for fun, friends and family. Others still see its superstitious nature or ties to the deceased. Whatever your point of view, you cannot deny the fascinating nature of the story of Hallowe’en.

The Friday of October 13th!

Come join us the Friday of October 13th at 7 pm at the Museum!

The Haunted Museum....Enter If You Dare opens at the Museum on the evening of October 13th. This Hallowe'en special exhibition opening is accompanied with classically scary cartoon and film show and runs until Hallowe'en on October 31st.

Why not invite your friends to join us the film party and join in the night of drinking 'bloddy' red wine, eating pop corn and looking back in time by watching old traditions of eerie movies?

The Museum is decorated with all sorts of weird, spooky items. We invite you to come in costume and enjoy our most delightful party to kick start the Hallowe'en time of the year when witches, ghosts, and goblins are 'officially' in town.

Changing times

Over the past six months we’ve said goodbye to some familiar faces and we’ve had the opportunity to welcome some new ones into the fold. Magdalena Moore, Collections Assistant at the Museum for that past four years, left in July to devote more time to her position at the Museum of Anthropology. Education Coordinator Greg Robertson left us in December 2005, and Isaac Vanderhorst has taken over the position in March 2006. Isaac comes to us from the North Vancouver Museum & Archives, where he worked as educational programmer and also acted as historical interpreter. He has worked at the Maritime Museum of BC in Victoria as Education Officer and spent last summer working on an archaeological dig in Spain.

Archivist Melanie Hardbattle departed in August 2006 to pursue other opportunities, and Carol Howie has taken over the position on a temporary basis. Carol already knows her way around the Archives – she filled in for seven months between November 2004 and June 2005. She has also worked on various projects here at the West Vancouver Museum & Archives, including the cataloguing of the Hodgson collection. We also have had the benefit of two summer students this year. Julian Hou, a student of architecture at UBC, joined us as Collections Assistant, a position funded by Young Canada Works. UBC law student Darren Penner joined us for his third summer at the museum, to assist with running the Gallery, public programs and education programs.

We would like to welcome our new team members and say a fond farewell to those who are leaving us. Happy trails!

Photo of Julian Hou (left) and Darren Penner (right)

Halloween at the West Vancouver Museum

There are some great Halloween events happening at the museum this year. Mark your calendars now - they're sure to be frightfully good!

Enter If You Dare

This is a special Halloween exhibit that opens on Friday the 13th of October. Explore Halloween throughout the ages, from Celtic rituals and traditions to pop culture ghouls and legends. Hear spooky tales from our own region, and learn about local customs practiced on All Hallows Eve. Dracula, Frankenstein, the Headless Horseman, and all their friends help us to shed some light on the origins of today's popular images of Halloween. Why do we carve pumkins, trick or treat, and bob for apples? Find the answers to these and other creepy questions at the West Vancouver Museum this Halloween!

We have special hours during this exhibition! From October 13th to 31st we will be open Tuesday to Saturday between noon and 6pm. Don't miss it!


Howl-O-Ween

This is a speical event for kids at the Museum this Halloween!

Make boo-goo and other potions in our mad wizard laboratory. Other activities include ghost paintings, trick or treat bags, pasta skeletons, and pumpkin crafts. Spooky stories (but not too spooky) topped off with a treasure hunt through our very own Sleepy Hollow.

Times and dates are as follows. Make note of the code and register using telereg or webreg by clicking here.

1pm - 3pm, Saturday, October 21, 6-8yrs, $30, 351017
1pm - 3pm, Saturday, October 28, 6-8yrs, $30, 351019
5pm - 7pm, Saturday, October 21, 9-11rs, $30, 351018
5pm - 7pm, Saturday, October 28, 9-11rs, $30, 351021

North Shore Heritage Weekend, September 16 and 17

Stop by the museum this September for Heritage Weekend on September 16 and 17!

On Saturday the 16th we will host an antique car show with a 1950s theme. There will also be a number of displays by community groups highlighting West Vancouver's built, natural and cultural heritage. This is an excellent opportunity to learn about West Vancouver and see some vehicles that don't often appear on the roads anymore!

A home tour is scheduled for Sunday, September 17. The West Vancouver portion of the tour will highlight the modernist period, with a focus on the Copper Cliff neighbourhood above Horseshoe Bay. Tickets for this event are 15 dollars and will be available at the Museum after Labour Day. Our last home tour was a huge success - don't miss this opportunity for a first-hand look at modernist architecture!

And while you're checking out the events, be sure to stop by the museum gallery to have a look at our current exhibit, Living on the Edge: West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970. This exhibit, which was origianlly due to close on September 3rd, has been extended due to its popularity. Learn more about the exhibit here.

Palm Springs: A Modernist Destination

The following post was written by West Vancouver Museum staff member Darren Penner, who recently travelled to Palm Springs, California.

When I decided to go to Palm Springs earlier this summer, I hadn't been thinking about architecture. When I got there, however, architecture quickly became a major focus. I've spent quite a bit of time in Palm Springs and the surrounding area, but this was my first trip down since I became interested in modernism. So in that sense, I was seeing many things for the first time - or at least looking at them in a different way.

Palm Springs is full of modernism. You see it in the architecture of office buildings, shopping centers, public buildings and private residences, in art, and interior design. Original modernist structures from the mid-20th century stand beside newer buildings which are being built in the modernist style. Interior design shops and rummage stores on Palm Canyon Drive and other places feature many, many pieces of modernist furniture and other household items. Much of it, of course, is pricey, but there are still a lot of bargains to be found.

Coming into the city from the west on Highway 111, the Palm Springs Visitors Center is one of the first buildings you'll see. Located at 2901 North Palm Canyon Drive, it was originally a gas station designed by Albert Frey. The roof is an especially striking feature, as you can see in the photos below. The building, built in 1965, eventually became an art gallery before being converted into the Visitors Center.

I should add that a stop at the Visitors Center is pretty much mandatory for anyone visiting Palm Springs to look at architecture, and not only because of the structure itself. Inside you'll find a lot of great books on Desert Modernism, which is also called Palm Springs Modernism. They are loaded with great pictures of modernist structures in Palm Springs and other cities throughout Southern California. I bought a book called Palm Springs Weekend: The Architecture and Design of a Midcentury Oasis (Danish, Andrew, and Alan Hess. Chronicle Books, 2001), which I highly recommend. I was also able to buy a driving tour map, which helped me find many of the more famous structures, such as the Neutra designed Kaufman Residence.

The Palm Springs Visitors Center (Albert Frey)




The Kaufman Residence (Richard Neutra)



Other interesting structures in Palm Springs

Palm Springs is an excellent place to go if you're into modernism. One word of warning though: It's hot in the summer, and I mean hot. Personally, I don't mind the heat, but with summertime temperatures that routinely get up past 44 degrees Celcius (110 degrees Fahrenheit), it would be too hot for a lot of people. It starts to cool down in September and in winter the daily temperatures are a comfortable low to mid 20s Celcius (70s on the Fahrenheit scale).

Last Chance for Tea & Tour!

Don't miss your last chance to participate in our Summer Tea & Tour Program coming up this Wednesday, August 30th. Join us for a guided tour of our current exhibit, Living on the Edge: West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970, followed by tea and refreshments served in the museum garden.

This is a great opportunity to learn about a prominant form of architecture in West Vancouver and to socialize with your neighbours while learning about the history of the Gertrude Lawson house, where the museum is located. You can sign up for this event using telereg or webreg (code 310871) by clicking here.

Want to know more? Click here!

Japanese Tea Ceremonies Conclude

Our Japanese Tea Ceremony program concluded on Wednesday, as Sachi Rummel hosted the last ceremony of the summer in the museum garden.

We'd like to thank Sachi, a volunteer here at the West Vancouver Museum, for all her hard work. Thanks also to the volunteers and participants - we couldn't have done it without you!

Sachi serves a cup of macha tea to museum staff member Isaac Vanderhorst

Sachi conducting a tea ceremony during the Wearing Tradition: Kimono event on July 15

Cultural Capitals of Canada

If you live in West Vancouver, you probably know that our city has been chosen as a 2006 Cultural Capital by the Cultural Capitals of Canada program.

Celebration and Collaboration

As a result of this distinction West Vancouver is commissioning a sculpture, which will highlight and promote Squamish Nation heritage. The Sculpture Commission, a componant of the Squamish Sculpture Symposium, made a call for submissions from local artists and has now narrowed their decision to three finalists.

The artists have constructed scale models of their proposals, and these models have been on display at various places in West Vancouver over the past few weeks. Beginning today, they are on display at the West Vancouver Museum, where they will remain until Wednesday when the selection committee makes its final decision.

We've posted pictures of the models, but don't miss this opportunity to check out the finalists here at the West Vancouver Museum!






The Sculpture Comission will make its final decision on Wednesday, and there is opportunity for the public to comment on which models they like and why. Don't delay - come to the West Vancouver Museum today and have a look!

Call For Volunteers!

Whether you love to talk to people or work independently, have a thirst for knowledge or want to explore West Vancouver history, there's a wonderful and wide range of activities for vounteers here at the West Vancouver Museum!

Volunteers form a critical component of the Museum. From covering shifts in the gallery/gift shop to assisting with openings and special events or working with school children and other members of the community in public education programs, volunteers generally give 2-3 hours per week and can participate in a variety of special activities in addition to their chosen work areas. Training is provided and all volunteers receive invitations to exhibit openings and special events.

Currently, there are openings in the following volunteer teams:

Gallery Guides:

Ongoing shifts: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, from noon until 4:30pm. Gallery guides are the front line people working in the gallery/gift shop area. If you enjoy learning about the history of West Vancouver, talking with visitors, giving tours and selling items from the gift ship, this is a great opportunity to promote West Vancouver to our citizens and visitors.

Public Programs Assistant:

Public programs assistants help with our educational programs. These programs are great fun! If you enjoy working with the public, particularly children and seniors, and like arts and crafts, this may be the position for you. This is not a weekly commitment, as we do not run the programs every week, but in combination with being a gallery guide, it can add variety to your volunteer experience.

Reception/Special Events:

Reception/special events volunteers help with exhibit openings and special programs. These events are a lot of fun, and usually take on a differnet theme or focus every time. This is not a weekly commitment, but rather as needed throughout the year, usually something every one or two months.

Collections:

Ongoing shifts. Collections involves all museum objects on display and in storage. Volunteers may be assigned a special project or may help with cataloguing and data entry. Competence with computers and an interest in cataloguing are definite assets!


Volunteer Benefits

The West Vancouver Museum relies on the assistance of enthusiastic and committed volunteers. We want you to know how much your time here means to us, so we have developed a volunteer recognition package! It includes:

• Acknoledgement of your contribution to the community
• 10% off items in the gift shop
• Volunteer appreciation and recognition events
• Invitations to the many public programs that we offer throughout the year
• Reference letters, which are provided upon request after at least 3 months of service

Terms of the Volunteer Agreement:

• Volunteers must commit to a minimum of 2 hours of service per week for a minimum of 3 months
• Volunteers are required to attend an orientation session
• Volunteers should attend an exhibit orientation tour
• Volunteers are expected to record their volunteer hours in the gallery guide manual
• Volunteers are expected to familiarize themselves with the museum, archives, and history of the Gertrude Lawson House, and other local history
• As representatives of the West Vancouver Museum, volunteers are expected to demonstrate professional conduct and courtesy while on duty

Why Volunteer?

The answer is, quite simply, a feeling of satisfaction and the knowledge that you are making a contribution to your community. As a volunteer you will be helping out with the preservation and promotion of community history, and you will have the opportunity to make new contacts and community connections. Why wait? Click here to print out a volunteer application form and bring it in to Kiriko at the museum today!

Photos taken from two volunteer events: The VanDusen Gardens trip in April, 2006, and the volunteer appreciation lunch in August, 2006.

Scottish Fiddler Entertains Crowd at the West Vancouver Museum!

On Wednesday, August 2nd, Angus MacKinnon entertained a sellout crowd in the museum garden with the sounds of traditional Scottish fiddle music. There was a lot of excitement about this event, and the audience could be heard humming, singing, and even dancing to the music.

Mr. MacKinnon's performance was part of our Tea & Tour program running throughout the summer here at the museum. Museum staff member Darren Penner started the event with a tour of the current museum exhibit, Living on the Edge: West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970. After the tour participants moved to the museum garden to enjoy the sounds of the Scottish fiddle, as well as refreshments supplied by Coco Loco. The sticky buns they supplied were so good that we could barely keep up with demand!

Scroll down for some pictures from the event!

We at the West Vancouver Museum would like to extend our deepest thanks to Mr. MacKinnon for donating his time to play for us. The audience loved it and the event was a great success! Thanks also to Coco Loco for supplying the refreshments, and the volunteers and staff who helped out with setup, service, and take down - we couldn't have done it without you!

Coco Loco!

Coco Loco has sponsored various events here at the museum this summer, including the Tea & Tour program, the Scottish Fiddler event with Angus MacKinnon, and the volunteer appreciation lunch.

Their donations of baked goods, salad, coffee, and other supplies have greatly enhanced our public programs this summer. Their food is always delicious and we are so grateful for their generosity!

Coco Loco is located at 1735 Marine Drive. In addition to operating a cafe at that location, they provide catering for a variety of events, including weddings, birthdays, luncheons, dinner parties, cocktail parties, and memorials.

We have been very lucky to have their support this summer and would encourage our readers to support them in return!

Thanks again, Coco Loco!

Programs for Scouts and Guides

We offer several programs for scouts and guides that work directly toward achievements and badges. During the programs, your group will actively participate in learning and hands-on activities that will engage and educate them about life at the last century, and relating it to the 21st century way of life.

The West Vancouver Museum welcomes Scout and Guide groups to experience history in a turn of a century way!

Suggested Programs

*Our Flags, Our Symbols.
*Sea Walk Tour.
*Early Pioneer Life.
*Halloween.

Times/Dates
Sept-June
Mon.-Thurs. (nights)
Sat. (days)

Fee $35.00

1 or 1.5 Hours

For more information or to make a booking please contact Isaac Vanderhorst.

Community Programs

The Museum offers a variety of community history presentations.

The West Vancouver Museum offers Historical presentations on our area’s history to all interested groups and organizations. The Visits include distribution of museum artefacts, historical photographs through the use of slides, video, or power-point, discussions, activities, and of course the expertise of Museum staff. Typically the presentations visits run 60 minutes.

Dates.
Mon.-Fri
Days and Evenings

For more information or to make a booking please contact Isaac Vanderhorst.

*Photo courtesty John R. Stuart

School Programs

OUTREACH PROGRAMS
*Museum programs offered in your classroom.

The West Vancouver Museum offers a variety of educational programs on art, history and culture for elementary and secondary school students. Customized special topic education programs are available throughout the year.

Down to the Sea
Grade 6-12

Explore our unique coastline with your students by examining the drawings of B.C. Binning and the distinct way he documented West Vancouver and British Columbia during the 1940/s. By studying his art, students gain a sense of nature and history and learn to see their surroundings in a new light.

A Fine Place to Live – The Early Days of West Vancouver
Grade 2 - 3

Early West Vancouver resident John Lawson will visit your class and personally guide your students through an exciting hands-on program of what life was like in our Community before electricity and the automobile.

Building a Modern Community
Grade: 4 -10

Introduce your class to our unique West Coast architecture and neighbourhoods. Learn about the “Post and Beam” and how “living on the edge” influenced the development of a new style. Students explore the many significant Canadian architects who contributed to the development of our modern community. Programs include hands-on activities using photographs, building plans, vintage magazines, real-estate and construction ads.

Times: 9:00am, 10:45am, and 1:00pm, Monday – Friday

Each program lasts 60 to 75 minutes, depending on the group.

Cost: $ 40

Program Packages include all necessary support materials and work sheets. Please ask for a customized program to fit your current art and social studies instructions if you would like to explore a topic other than those listed. Book your class today! Please contact Isaac Vanderhorst at 604-925-7297 or ivanderhorst@westvancouver.ca

EDUCTAION KITS

Each traveling education kit contains hands-on objects, relevant lesson text and a variety of fun unique activities! These portable kits are designed for teachers to use in the classroom.

Enduring Traditions – Squamish Weaving
Grade: 4-5

The heritage of the Squamish Nation is explored through art and culture lessons developed to instill critical thinking skills in social studies, art and science.

Cost: $ 75.0

Education Kits are available for two-week loan periods. Museum staff will deliver and pick-up the kits at your school.

Please contact Isaac Vanderhorst with any questions or to make a booking.

What's Happening at the West Vancouver Museum

We've got lots of exciting events happening here at the museum in the next few months. Here are the highlights!

Living on the Edge: West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970: Our current exhibit explores the development of west coast modernism as a distinct style of architecture in West Vancouver, and explores the relationship between architecture and design. The exhibit has been very well received, and we are pleased to announce that it has been extended to September 17th! For more information on this must-see look at one of Canada's most prominant architectural styles, click here.

Tea & Tour (August 16 and 30): Join us for a tour of our current exhibit, Living on the Edge, West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970, followed by tea and refreshments in the museum garden. Click here for more information on the program and registration.

Japanese Tea Ceremonies (August 9 and 23): Participate in an authentic Japanese Tea Ceremony, as Sachi Rummel hosts the event in the museum garden. Sachi, an experienced tea ceremony practitioner, studied under the master of the Enshuryu school in Japan. Not to be missed! Click here for more information.

Get ready for some Halloween fun at the museum this fall as we offer our haunted Halloween exhibit between October 13th and 31st. Find out where Halloween comes from and get a healthy dose of the pop culture icons and traditions that have made it what it is today. Opening day is Friday the 13th, and the exhibit is suitable for adults and children of all ages - Drop by if you dare!

And speaking of Halloween... we're holding our first ever film night on October 13th, and the theme is Halloween! We'll be serving red wine, so the event is adults only - be prepared to scream! Register using telereg/webreg code 355267. See you there!

Fabulous 50s at the West Vancouver Museum. Were the 50s really fab? Find out on heritage weekend (September 15th to 17th). We'll have an antique car show, a home tour, and lots more 50s-themed fun-filled events. Check back for more information coming soon!

Only 3 days left to register for Wednesday's Big Event!

We have a Scottish Fiddler coming to the West Vancouver Museum this Wednesday, August 2nd! Angus MacKinnon (pictured left) has entertained audiences accross the continent with his fiddle music, and now he's playing right here in West Vancouver. Tickets are only 6.50 per adult, or 5.20 per senior/student. Register early to avoid the rush!

This event is part of our summer Tea & Tour program. For program and registration information click here. To learn more about Angus MacKinnon click here.

Questions? Contact Darren Penner at 604.925.7295 or by email at dpenner@westvancouver.ca.

See you there!

The Home & Garden Tour: A Great Success!

On Saturday, July 22, the West Vancouver Museum hosted a home and garden tour, which accompanies our current exhibit, Living on the Edge: West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970. Both tours were sold out and we had a fabulous time touring two houses: The Grinnell residence and the Plommer residences.

There was a lot of enthusiasm for this event and we would like to thank the current owners of the Grinnell residence and Plommer residence for opening up their homes and acting as tour guides!

Click on the information boxes for a bigger version, as well as other pictures we took of these beautiful homes during the tour!





Thanks again to the home owners, particpants, volunteers, and staff who made the Home & Garden Tour a success! We enjoyed it so much, we would like to do it again. We haven't planned anything yet, but when we do you'll find everything you need to know right here on the West Vancouver Museum blog!

Living on the Edge in the North Shore Outlook

Click here to read a review of our current exhibit, Living on the Edge: West Coast Modernist Homes 1940-1970, published in the North Shore Outlook on July 27!

Have you been in to see it yet? This exhibit runs through the summer and wraps up on September 17th - Don't miss it!

Scottish Fiddler to Play in Museum Garden

On Wednesday, August 2nd, Angus MacKinnon will perform with his Scottish fiddle at the West Vancouver Museum, as part of our summer Tea & Tour Program. For more information on the event click here, or continue reading below to learn more about Mr. MacKinnon and some of the events he has played at!

The following information comes to us courtesy of Angus J. MacKinnon Consultants Limited:

Angus MacKinnon was raised on a sheep farm in the north of Scotland and in the forties and fifties with TV still in its infancy, the long winter nights were taken up with school work and music with the whole family involved.

Angus and his two sisters, Helen and Betty, were endowed with a musical family background as were most families of this time. The village hall was the bug of activities in most communities. In smaller areas the school house would be used as the ahll and most Friday and Saturday nights there would be a function somewhere. Whole families would attend and the entire evening would be for music, singing and dancing. This was a culture of music, song and dance with lowland Highland and Island influences - it told a story.

Some of this music had been adapted and influenced by France and Scandinavia. Due mainly to Scotland's close association with this area, both in commerce and long ago battles fought between the countries.

Historically, Ireland has been very involved over the centuries and the two cultures are very much entwined. Both have strong Celtic ties.

From this background of music and culture, Angus and his two sisters broadcast Scottish music from BBC Glasgow on radio, while still in their early teens.

Since coming to Canada in 1954 Angus has found that the music that he grew up with has stood the test of time and has allowed him to forge new friendships with people from all over the world. He has played Scottish music for Scottish Country Dancing Clubs throughout the United States and Canada, and toured extensively with his Scottish Variety Show, including singers, dancers, and pipers.

Angus has played with Killarney at the Blarney Stone in Gastown for the past twelve years. Any given night, especially on the weekend, one can bump into patrons who frequent this club from all around the world. They come for one thing - the music. As evidenced by continually large crowds, Killarney is truly one of the world's great folk bands with the emphasis or course, on the Irish and Scottish Cultures. Angus says it's a privilege to play with this band.

Members of the group are John Lynch, John Cronin, Mari Cronin, Mike Cronin, Terry Boyce, Stevie Ford, and John Knill.

SOME OF THE PLACES/EVENTS AT WHICH ANGUS MACKINNON HAS PERFORMED

The Campbell's - CBC-TV Syndicated Series (Toronto)

Morningside - CBC-Radio with Harry Brown (Toronto)

The Bob Mclean Show - CBC-TV Noon Hour Talk Show (Toronto)

The Robbie Burns Story - Massey Hall Theatre (Toronto)

The Andy Stewart Show - Massey Hall Theatre (Toronto)

Mariposa Folk Festival - Shared the main stage with Joan Baez, Woody Guthrie, Murray McLaughlin

Montreal Cultural Olympics (1976)

Canadian National Exhibition - Grandstand and Bandshell shows including the Scottish World Festival in 1972

Metro Caravan - Toronto - A two-week cultural extravaganza portraying music, song and dance by countries from around the world

Banff Springs Hotel, Alberta - Cultural festival

New York World's Fair - Cultural festival

The Far Shore - Award winning Canadian Movie - Based on the life story of Canadian artist Tom Tomson (a member of the legendary Group of Seven). Movie Premiere held at the Royal Ontario Art Galleries

Scottish Fiddler Coming to the West Vancouver Museum!

Angus MacKinnon will perform at the West Vancouver Museum as part of our Tea & Tour program on Wednesday, August 2nd. Mr. MacKinnon is an accomplished musician who has entertained audiences across the country with his music. We are delighted to have him play for us here at the West Vancouver Museum! During an interlude Mr. MacKinnon will also discuss the cultural significance of Scottish fiddle music and his own thoughts on preserving and maintaining the music in its traditional form.

The Tea & Tour will be held at the museum, which is located in the Gertrude Lawson House at 680 17th Street. Gertrude Lawson built the house in 1939 and intended that it would resemble a Scottish castle. The livingroom, which is now the museum gallery, was built big enough for three sets of Scottish dancers. This is an excellent opportunity to come out and hear traditional Scottish music in a setting that is reminiscent of Scotland!

The event also features a guided tour of the museum and its current exhibition, Living on the Edge: West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970. The cost for the event is 6.50 per adult and 5.20 per senior/student. For more information on the tea and tour program click here. To register call Darren Penner at 604.925.7295 or send him an email at dpenner@westvancouver.ca.

You can also use the Telereg or Webreg system to register for this event! Simply call 604.925.7475 or click here and enter tour code 310869.

So mark your calendars for Wednesday, August 2nd, and we'll see you at the West Vancouver Museum!

Great Turnout for Wearing Tradition: Kimono!

We would like to send out a big thank you to everyone who helped make Wearing Tradition - Kimono a great success!

We ran two sessions, at 1pm and 4pm, in which Mineko Tanaka demonstrated the proper wearing of a kimono, as well as other Japanese traditions and customs. Sachi Rummel, one of our volunteers at the West Vancouver Museum, hosted a Japanese tea ceremony directly following the demonstration.

The event was a great success, and we would like to thank all of the participants, the volunteers, and our sponsors. Wearing Tradition - Kimono is the first in a series of events that will showcase traditional costumes worn in different cultures. We have not began planning the next installment of Wearing Tradition as of yet, but when we do you will be able to get all the information right here on the West Vancouver Museum blog!

The event began with a video and kimono wearing demonstration.

Mineko Tanaka instructed the audience in the proper wearing of a kimono while Kiriko Watanabe took questions from the audience and translated.

Tying the obi is an important part of the process, full of cultural significance. Mineko Tanaka's skill can be seen both front and back.

After the kimono demonstration participants were invited outside to the museum garden to take part in a Japanese tea ceremony, hosted by museum volunteer Sachi Rummel.

Sachi was assisted by many people, including West Vancouver Museum staff member and event organizer Kiriko Watanabe.

In following with Japanese tradition, participants drank Matcha tea from a bowl, with one hand placed on the bottom and the other hand placed on the side of the bowl.

Tickets were handed out at registration, and following the tea ceremony there was a prize draw.

Lucky winners received gifts from Mineko Tanaka, which she brought with her all the way from Japan.

Sorry you missed it? Today's kimono demonstration was a one time only event, but there is still plenty of time to register for one of the Japanese Tea Ceremonies, hosted by Sachi Rummel, that will be held at the West Vancouver Museum throughout the summer. Click here for more information!

What's Happening at the Museum This Week!

The West Vancouver Museum is hosting a variety of programs over the summer, and many of them are in full swing!

Wearing Tradition: Kimono is coming up this Saturday, and there is limited space available for the newly-added 4pm session. Come and see Mineko Tanaka demonstrate the wearing of a kimono while introducing the wisdom of her ancestors through traditional Japanese customs!

We are using the TeleReg registration system for this event. Register by phone at 604.925.7475 or by clicking here. You will need to use code 363017 to register.

Education Coordinator Isaac Vanderhorst is running three summer camps this year, the first of which began this week for children aged 6 to 8 years. If you wish to register for one of the other two, you still have time. The next one begins Monday, July 17, for children aged 6 to 8 years, and the last one will begin next Monday, June 24, for children aged 9 to 12 years. Register using the TeleReg information above. The code for the July 17 camp is 310933 and the code for the July 24 camp is 310948.

Stay tuned for many more exciting events happening at the museum this summer. We have a Home and Garden Tour coming up next Saturday, July 22 (see page 39 of the Leisure Guide for more information), we have Japanese Tea Ceremonies, as well as the summer Tea & Tour Program. Check back for more information on what's happening this summer at the West Vancouver Museum!

Wearing Tradition - Kimono - Second Session Added!

Due to popular demand, we have added a second session of Wearing Tradition - Kimono! Mineko Tanaka (pictured left), who operates a Meiji period kimono storehouse and national historic site in Japan, is coming to the West Vancouver Museum to demonstrate the wearing of a kimono and introduce the wisdom of her ancestors through traditional Japanese customs. Don't miss this opportunity to increase your cultural awareness and take part in a presentation never seen outside of Japan!

Both sessions are coming up this Saturday, July 15, at the West Vancouver Museum. Click here for more information, and to reserve a space call 604.925.7179. Be sure to book soon before the second session fills up!

For Museum information and directions click here.

Living on the Edge Lecture Series Concludes!

Thank you to Barry Downs, whose lecture, West Coast Modernism: Influence of Japan, drew a full house on Tuesday, June 27. The Tuesday evening lecture was the last in our series, which accompanies our current museum exhibit, Living on the Edge: West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970.

The series began on April 25 and has featured lectures on a variety of architecture-related topics. It has drawn on the knowledge of lecturers who are leaders in thier fields. All lectures were very well attended and we have received great feedback from the public!

We are very appreciative to the following lecturers:

Adele Weder, Writer (April 25)
B.C. Binning House: A Design Revolution

Donald Luxton, MRAIC (May 9)
As Modern as Television: West Coast Architecture on the North Shore

Allan Collier, Writer and Curator (May 20)
Post War Design and Craft in BC

Rhodri Windsor-Liscombe, Professor and Head, UBC Dept. of Art History, Visual Art, and Theory (May 30)
Architectural Debates of the 50s

Barry Downs, MAIBC (June 27)
West Coast Modernism: Influence of Japan

Japanese Tea Ceremonies

This summer, Sachi Rummel, an experienced Japanese tea ceremony practitioner who studied under the master of the Enshuryu School in Japan, offers Cha no yu or Japanese tea in the Museum's garden. While serving a cup of Matcha tea, Sachi will explain the philosophy behind the Japanese tradition. Come and enjoy spiritual enrichment and attain peaceful harmony.

Summer dates for the tea ceremony (with telephone registration codes) are:

Wednesday, July 26 (310822)
Wednesday, August 9 (310823)
Wednesday, August 23 (310824)

Each session is $15 per participant.
In case of rain, tea will be offered in the Museum building.
Please register in advance by TeleReg: 604.925.7475, Webreg: webreg.westvancouver.net or by phone at 604.925.7270 with the code number mentioned above.

Wearing Tradition - Kimono

Experience Japanese culture and tradition at the West Vancouver Museum!

Mineko Tanaka, who operates a Meiji period kimono storehouse and national historic site in Kyoto, Japan, is coming to the West Vancouver Museum on Saturday July 15, 2006. For the first time in North America, Ms. Tanaka will demonstrate the wearing of a kimono and introduce the wisdom of her ancestors through traditional Japanese customs.

The storehouse, a designated cultural treasure of Japan built in 1885, is called Tondaya. It is a classic example of a Meiji period (1868-1912) storehouse, with a retail shop in front and living quarters in the rear. Today, Mineko Tanaka runs Tondaya as a living museum and kimono store. She offers kimino wearing lessons and formal tea ceremonies and teaches the refined manners that have been handed down in her family from generation to generation for over 120 years.

This special summer event will include a presentation by Ms. Tanaka about preserving traditions and a display of exquisite Nishijin kimono, a style that is considered to be one of the finest. Ms. Tanaka will reveal the secrets to wearing a kinomo properly and beautifully.

After the kimono demonstration, Ms. Tanaka, along with experienced Enshuryu tea practitioner and West Vancouver resident Sachi Rummel, will host a garden tea ceremony. While serving a cup of matcha tea, they will explain the philosophy of this Japanese tradition.

Come enjoy this special event and attain spiritual enrichment and peaceful harmony.

Please register in advance. Tickets are $30 for an adult and $27 for a student or a senior. For more information or to register, please contact Kiriko Watanabe at kwatanabe@westvancouver.ca or by phone at 604.925.7179.

Thank you to our sponsors!

Living on the Edge Lecture Series Continues Tonight!

Our lecture series continues this evening, June 27, as Barry Downs, MAIBC, speaks on West Coast Modernism: Influence of Japan.

The lecture begins at 6:30pm but it is a good idea to arrive early, as seating is on a first-come-first serve basis. Admission is by donation.

This is the final lecture in the series, which has been running since April 25. It compliments our current exhibition, Living on the Edge: West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970. Learn more about the exhibition here.

Living on the Edge: West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970

You are invited to tour our current exhibit, Living on the Edge: West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940-1970. This exhibit features photographs and architectural plans of West Vancouver modernist homes and examines the interrelationship between architecture, art and design and the emergence of a new style of architecture, West Coast Modernism. Covers and articles from Western Homes and Living Magazine and interior furnishings and art by local designers and artists are included.

The exhibit is running throughout the summer and will end on September 17. Don't miss it!

Read on for exhibit photos and the text from the introductory panel.

Living on the Edge
West Vancouver Modernist Homes 1940 – 1970

West Coast Modernism, one of Canada's most prominent architectural movements, emerged in the middle of the twentieth century. Influenced in part by European modernism, Japanese design and the work of American architects, such as Frank Lloyd Wright and Richard Neutra, Canadian architects and designers embraced West Vancouver's spectacular and rugged coastal landscape to produce a legacy of unique and award-winning residences. In the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, many of these homes were brought to the public’s attention through magazines, such as Western Homes and Living, which promoted modern trends in architecture, interiors and design.

Beginning in the early 1940s and continuing after the Second World War, architects, artists and designers actively explored relationships between their disciplines. Artist and educator B.C. Binning, an early proponent of the modern movement, designed his seminal flat-roofed house in 1941 and incorporated his painted murals into its design. Boundaries between the applied and fine arts were blurring and merging; in 1949, the Vancouver Art Gallery presented Design for Living, a Community Arts Council exhibition of modern room settings featuring locally designed furnishings, architectural plans and art.

West Vancouver’s rocky and precipitous topography and a comparatively mild climate inspired architects to use new construction techniques in their house designs. A flat or inclined roof, an open floor plan and extensive use of glazing, skylights and exterior doors were used to integrate indoor and outdoor spaces and exploit spectacular views of ocean and forest. Abundant local and inexpensive construction materials, such as hemlock, cedar and stone, linked the house to its surroundings and brought a natural palette into the living space.

Post-war optimism, economic prosperity and population growth led to an increase in consumer demand for affordable and functional housing. Using the “post and beam” method of construction - a regular placement of structural beams and posts combined with planking and standardized materials like plywood sheeting - a house could be built for five dollars a square foot. The distinct West Coast architectural style grew out of the creative and adaptive spirit of innovative architects and designers active between 1940 and 1970.