The Polygon Gallery presents Ghosts of the Machine, a new group exhibition by curator Elliott Ramsey that looks at the relationships between humans, technology, and ecology. The exhibition features a new commission by Cease Wyss (Skwxwú7mesh), in addition to works by Ho Tzu Nyen, Juliana Huxtable, Anne Duk Hee Jordan, Lu Yang, Skawennati, and Santiago Tamayo Soler.
Top: Santiago Tamayo Soler, Retornar; Right: Skawennati, Birth of an Avatar; Lu Yang, Heaven Realm #1
Admission: Admission to The Polygon Gallery is by donation, made possible through generous, multi-year support from BMO Financial Group.
Public programming related to the exhibition will take place on Thursday evenings throughout the summer. Two short film programs will be screened, in addition to VR experiences curated and programmed by IM4. Wyss and her daughter, Senaqwila Wyss, will host talks and nature walks in Harmony Gardens, their community gardens located on unceded Skwxwú7mesh lands.
“The term ‘ghost in the machine’ refers to the mind-body duality: the idea of the ‘mind’ as software inhabiting the ‘body’ as hardware,” says Ramsey, who curated Interior Infinite at The Polygon last summer. “Such binaries aren’t real. The mind doesn’t exist without the body. The same can be said about technology. We try to split the ‘virtual world’ from the ‘real world,’ but virtual spaces rely on material hardware — with ecological implications — and are experienced physically. Similarly, we have real social and political interactions on digital platforms. We can’t constrain reality into ‘real’ and ‘virtual;’ we end up sliding across these boundaries like ghosts through walls.”
The international group of artists in Ghosts of the Machine reminds us that despite its otherworldly lustre, cyberspace cannot be separated from the “real world”. It is an extension of our societies, economy, and ecosphere. Through the glowing interfaces associated with digital media, these artists constantly point back to the world offline. By defying the imaginary boundary between online and offline worlds, they slip across other made-up binaries: between human versus nonhuman, technology versus nature. They reveal how these things do not exist in opposition to each other, but are in fact continuous and fluidly interconnected.
This month we welcome summer once again but this time around we have more things to do, more festivals, and more June events in Metro Vancouver – at last! Miss604 is proud to sponsor Summer at Burnaby Village Museum, Beer by the Pier in North Vancouver (June 18), and the Big Sisters Spring Lunch (June 22). Find these and more fun attractions and events listed below:
The Fair at the PNE has been a staple in Vancouver for over 100 years and it returns this year with all-time favourites, new fun and food offerings, and a sizzling hot PNE Summer Night Concerts lineup!
The Fair at the PNE
The PNE Fair is back on from August 20 to September 5, 2022 with the Stars of the Peking Acrobats, SuperDogs, Flying Fools High Dive Show, BCAA ToonCity shows, Dueling Pianos, Electric Fire, For the Love of Drag tribute show, and Coca-Cola Stage bands.
The Fair continues to be the best part of summer, where you can fill up on all the treats you can eat, learn about agriculture, experience thrill rides, watch chef demonstrations on the Safeway Cooking Stage, and experience Metro Vancouver’s Together We Make Our Region Strong showcase.
PNE Summer Night Concerts 2022
At the GMC Stage at the PNE Amphitheatre, don’t miss The B-52s Farewell Tour, followed by quintessential Canadian acts: Blue Rodeo, Bachman Cummings, and the Barenaked Ladies with special guest Kim Mitchell.
Hip Hop fans can groove to shows by Nelly, and TLC & Shaggy, while country fans will be entertained by Brothers Osborne. Take a trip down memory lane with R&B classics by living legends Chaka Khan & Patti LaBelle.
International Stars of Drag take to the stage for A Night of True Colours in an all-ages extravaganza hosted by Ginger Minj and featuring Vancouver’s own Kendall Gender.
Plus: Chicago, Steve Miller Band, Cake, Gipsy Kings Feat. Nicolas Reyes, and The Beach Boys. And the largest group of musicians – The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra – round out this year’s exciting line-up with their tribute to the Beatles.
The B-52s Farewell Tour Sat, Aug 20, 2022
Steve Miller Band Tue, Aug 30, 2022
Blue Rodeo Sun, Aug 21, 2022
TLC & Shaggy Wed, Aug 31, 2022
Barenaked Ladies with Kim Mitchell Tue, Aug 23, 2022
Brothers Osborne Thu, Sep 1, 2022
Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Thu, Aug 25, 2022
Nelly Fri, Sep 2, 2022
Stars of Drag Fri, Aug 26, 2022
BACHMAN CUMMINGS Sat, Sep 3, 2022
Gipsy Kings Feat. Nicolas Reyes Sat, Aug 27, 2022
The Beach Boys Sun, Sep 4, 2022
Chicago Sun, Aug 28, 2022
Chaka Khan & Patti LaBelle Mon, Sep 5, 2022
PNE Summer Nights Concerts pre-sale is this Thursday, May 26th at 10:00am and regular tickets will be on sale through TicketLeader on Friday, May 27 at 10:00am. Note: Concert tickets do not include Fair Gate Admission. You will also need to purchase a date specific Fair Gate Admission separately. PNE Insiders get access to the pre-sale, sign up for their newsletter and never miss an update!
Dragon Boat BC has announced the 2022 Concord Pacific Dragon Boat Festival lineup with free main stage concerts Saturday, June 25 and Sunday, June 26 along with a full slate of programming throughout the weekend:
When: Public festival programming takes place on June 25 to 26, 2022
Racer-only events on June 24
Where: Concord Pacific Place and Creekside Park around False Creek in Vancouver
As the continent’s largest dragon boat festival, the free public event will feature much-anticipated international dragon boat races on False Creek and cultural programming.
The festival’s main stage lineup features one of Chinatown’s oldest traditional music ensembles and groups representing Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh communities; reflecting the organization’s goal to respect the roots of where it comes from, and protocols of the territories where the event is held.
Music and Performer Lineup
Saturday, June 25 The Zolas, Hotel Mira, Mauvey, Children of Takaya, Dacey, Ludic, AHSIA, Eagle Song Dancers, Qing Yun Music Society
Sunday, June 26 Desirée Dawson, Tonye Aganaba, Coastal Wolf Pack, COCO JAFRO, Best Night Ever, Niña Mendoza
The festival will also feature a significant new addition as part of its programming, supported by Concord Pacific and the Province of BC (to be announced June 9th).
Races, Food, Shopping
Of course the main event, the dragon boat racing, will be on the water from 9:00am to 6:00pm daily, with races running approximately every 11 minutes. Most races are 500m races starting from around Cambie Bridge and ending near the Main Stage. Look for on-site screens for the livestream and race commentary, and look for Race Result towers to see the day’s schedules.
There will be cultural programs on site so visitors can learn about the community’s heritage, and how it intersects with the story of the modern dragon boat festival. Located along Creekside Park South between Main Street and Creekside Community Centre, hear from the original inhabitants of these territories, and hear myths behind the dragon boat festival’s foundation and arrival in Vancouver.
When it comes to food, why not enjoy one of the province’s most scenic patios – right at Creekside Park! Pick up a drink (photo ID required) from the beverage garden, and enjoy a bite from one of the many food trucks located at Creekside Park North.
You can also pick up a souvenir of the Festival, or support a local vendor across the entire site.
About the Canadian International Dragon Boat Festival Society
The Canadian International Dragon Boat Festival Society is the non-profit organizer of North America’s flagship dragon boat festival – the Concord Pacific Dragon Boat Festival, and runs Dragon Zone Paddling Club – Canada’s largest paddling club.
The Society also produces a series of races, cultural programming, and community initiatives centred around the traditional Chinese sport of dragon boat. Through its All Access and youth programs, supported by the Milton K. Wong Legacy Project, the Society makes paddling experiences accessible regardless of any barriers to participation.
Megaphone Magazine has launched its 12th-annual special literary edition, Voices of the Street — Stealing Looks at the Sun: Writing about Climate Change in 2022 — showcasing the literary talents of marginalized writers in Vancouver.
Voices of the Street and Megaphone Vendor Stephen Scott – Photo submitted
“When I ventured too far up a tree, my father would catch me stealing looks at the sun, aware that the sky was certainly my heaven.” – JT Sandu (a.k.a. Ruby Diamond)
This past year, new phrases such as “heat dome”, “polar vortex” and “atmospheric river”’ entered our vocabularies as the elements that make up our world — Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Aether — cried out for us to accept what experts have been saying for years: Climate change is here.
So climate change is also here, on the pages of the 2022 Voices of the Streetliterary anthology.
Writers included in this year’s edition express the many challenges linked to the constellation of inequalities that come from a life lived in poverty. They are often the people closest to the ground during natural disasters and the ones least-equipped — at least economically — to navigate upheavals brought about by climate crises.
Stealing Looks at the Sun: Writing About Climate Change in 2022 features 34 powerful contributions from these writers, whose work reflects on memories of time spent in Haida Gwaii, contemplations on the mystery of crows and hummingbirds, recollections of surviving natural disasters, urgent calls for government action… and so much more.
For the second year, the anthology also features beautiful full-colour photographs taken by two community photographers, Priscillia Mays Tait and Mike McNeeley.
“Voices of the Street provides a platform for creative expression by those least likely to be heard: people surviving in the midst of poverty, inadequate housing, physical and mental illness, substance use disorders and other challenges,” says Megaphone Managing Editor Paula Carlson. “These are the residents in our communities who are silenced by stigma, so Megaphone seeks out and showcases their stories.”
In addition to buying Voices of the Street for $10 from vendors in Vancouver and Victoria, Megaphone supporters can now purchase this special literary anthology online, along with a copy of the latest Megaphone magazine.
Special Event
When: June 22, 2022 from 6:00pm to 8:30pm
Where: Goldcorp Centre for the Arts (149 W Hastings)
Some of the gifted community writers featured in the book will read their stories, and Mike and Priscillia will speak about their experiences being mentored as photographers. Vancouver’s Poet Laureate Fiona Tinwei Lam will offer a special reading.
Supporters are also encouraged to donate to Megaphone’s Spring Campaign, which will fund ongoing self-determined creative expression opportunities for marginalized people.
