It’s an exciting day for Vancouver’s arts and culture community. This morning the Vancouver Art Gallery celebrated a major milestone toward the realization of a transformational new building with the announcement of a $40 million lead gift from the Chan Family. This unprecedented act of generosity by the Chan Family brings the Gallery’s capital campaign to $85 million in private sector funding toward the new purpose-built facility. In recognition of this extraordinary gift, the Vancouver Art Gallery’s new building will be named Chan Centre for the Visual Arts.
Rendering of the new Chan Centre for the Visual Arts
“This is a historic time for the Vancouver Art Gallery in its 88th year! We are all inspired by the Chan Family’s extraordinary generosity, and their philanthropic passion for enriching our community,” said Kathleen S. Bartels, Director of the Vancouver Art Gallery. “With this unprecedented gift to the Vancouver Art Gallery, the Chans are demonstrating a profound investment in the future of this city and country, and one that will impact many generations to come.”
The gift from the Chan Family —the largest-ever single private donation to an arts and culture organization in British Columbia—builds on the Family’s long-standing history of supporting education as well as arts and culture institutions and programs with the aim of enriching communities in Canada and beyond.
Celebrating Other Significant Donations
Along with the Chan Family’s lead gift to name the new building, the Vancouver Art Gallery is also celebrating $45 million in other private sector support that has been made over the last several years, including significant contributions driven by the Gallery’s Board of Trustees. In particular, the generosity of fourteen individuals, families, foundations, and corporate supporters, who have contributed $1 million or more each demonstrating a wide range of support for this important project and a recognition of the incredible benefits it will bring to the entire community including tourism and as a significant economic driver.
Final New Vancouver Art Gallery Building Designs Unveiled
Rendering of the new Chan Centre for the Visual Arts
The Vancouver Art Gallery is also thrilled to unveil the final designs for its 300,000-square-foot building by world-renowned, Swiss-based architectural firm Herzog & de Meuron.
Designed to serve the Gallery’s expanding collection and to present outstanding art and educational programs for its expanding audiences, the new Vancouver Art Gallery will provide a global platform for Vancouver’s and Canada’s thriving arts scene and play a vital role in establishing this city as one of the world’s foremost cities for arts and culture. Situated at Larwill Park, unifying the crossroads of Downtown, Yaletown, Gastown, east Vancouver and Chinatown, the new Gallery will fuel a hub of creative and cultural activity for local members, the public and international visitors of all ages.
Rendering of the new Chan Centre for the Visual Arts
Herzog & de Meuron have designed the Vancouver Art Gallery’s new museum as a sculptural, symmetrical, upright building combining opaque and transparent surfaces, with larger volumes concentrated at the top and minimal mass at the bottom. By lifting the bulk of the structure high above the street, the design allows light and air to filter down to an active, open-air courtyard below.
With a generous designation of the land at Larwill Park from the City of Vancouver in place and $135 million in total private and public sector funding secured, including an initial investment of $50 million from the Province of British Columbia, the next step for the Vancouver Art Gallery Capital Campaign will be to continue its work with senior levels of government and the private sector to secure the additional funding needed to begin construction.
In the wintertime we don’t have fruit and flower festivals, with hay rides or corn mazes, however there are still plenty of Circle Farm Tour shops open for business from Pitt Meadows to Agassiz and in between. We went on a valley road trip with friends last weekend and ended up what I now call the “land of cheese and honey” tour.
The Land of Cheese and Honey
We decided to follow Route 7 all the way from Port Coquitlam out to Harrison Mills and Agassiz. Here are a few places that are open and able to provide samples (mmm), snacks, and shopping opportunities:
Honey
Dr. Bee’s Honeyland Where: 17617 Ford Detour Road, Pitt Meadows Details: Home of the annual Bees and Blueberries Festival in the summer, Dr Bee’s Honeyland has acres of organic blueberries outback and their farm gate store has various honey prodcuts and an interactive/educational display. Stop in for complimentary honey tasting, honey products, bee pollen (we got some for our smoothies), honey-based soaps and a variety of other all natural items.
Golden Meadows Honey also home of West Coast Bee Supply Where: 19950 Old Dewdney Trunk Road, Pitt Meadows Details: The shop has two sections: One with all the tools of the trade for beekeepers, and another is a bee-themed boutique with bee jewelery, baubles, trinkets, and of course honey. After another complimentary tasting, we scooped up a jar of the fireweed honey and learned about upcoming events in store.
Cheese
Golden Ears Cheesecrafters Where: 22270 128th Avenue, Maple Ridge Details: A kitchen supply shop filled with unique, artisinal sauces, dips, crackers, and more along with a wide selection of frozen/take-away meals and of course… cheese! Cheese samples, cheese products, and a bistro right inside the cheese shop. Open 9:00am to 5:00pm, and if you’re lucky you’ll get there on poutine day when they use their own squeaky curds to make this decadent Canadian comfort food. They also host cooking classes in their country kitchen along with special events like an upcoming Valentine Wine Dinner.
Farmhouse Natural Cheeses Where: 5634 McCallum Rd, Agassiz Details: We got there a little too late – they were sold out of curds! However, we picked up some goat gouda and a cheese snack pack from the farm gate store in Agassiz. A calendar on the wall told me that they were also at the Riley Park Farmers Market in Vancouver earlier that day. They also have an ice cream counter, which is a delicious treat any time of year. You can also with the farm animals in the barn or pasture out front.
For more information about the self-guided tour we followed, visit the Circle Farm Tour website. They have maps for Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge; Harrison Mills and Agassiz; Chilliwack; Langley; and Abbotsford.
This is not a sponsored/paid post but thanks to Honda Canada for providing the Acura MDX for our tour! Heated seats for all when we got back into the car after petting barn cats in the rain, a sunroof through which the Super Blood Wolf Moon appeared, and adaptive cruise control that allows you to maintain your speed as well as a desired interval from the car detected ahead. There were also lots of handy stowaway compartments in the trunk for all of our cheese purchases.
Variety – the Children’s Charity and Global BC are excited to announce that this year’s entertainment line-up for the 53rd Annual Variety Show of Hearts Telethon will include actor, author and social activist, George Takei.
The Variety Show of Hearts Telethon will air on Sunday, February 10 from 9:30am to 5:30pm on Global BC and via livestream at GlobalNews.ca. The public is also invited to come down to the Molson Canadian Theatre at Hard Rock Casino Vancouver where they can join in on the fun and excitement as an audience member.
Best known for his portrayal of “Mr. Sulu” on the acclaimed television and film series, Star Trek, George recently joined the cast of AMC’s anthology series, The Terror where he also serves as a consultant. He has earned a Grammy nomination with his Star Trek co-star, Leonard Nimoy in the “Best Spoken Word or Non-Musical Recording” category and has received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. A dynamic and powerful public speaker, George has become a favourite at the WE Day events across North America. He has also written four books including his 1994 autobiography, To the Stars.
#ShowOfHearts Entertainment Lineup
Joining George will be singer-songwriter Shawn Hook whose 2015 single, “Sound of Your Heart” reached #1 on Billboard’s Dance Club Songs chart and went on to be certified Double Platinum. Additionally, his 2017 single, “Reminding Me” – a ballad featuring Vanessa Hudgens – peaked at #3 onBillboard’s Hot AC chart and has logged more than 100 million streams on Spotify. Shawn has made numerous television appearances including Live! With Kelly, Jimmy Kimmel Live and Today.
Also appearing will be singer Jill Barber, country music trio The Heels and world music group Delhi 2 Dublin. A two-time Juno Award nominee, Jill’s albums have sold over 100,000 copies including 2011’sMischievous Moon which spent thirteen consecutive weeks at #1 on the Canadian Jazz chart and debuted in the US at #12 on Billboard’s Jazz chart. The Heels – who earned a BCCMA Award in 2016 – recently released their debut album, Love, Heels while Delhi 2 Dublin – who have performed their uniquely eclectic mix of Bhangra, Celtic and modern electronic at some of the biggest music festivals worldwide – released their new single, “Home (Everywhere I Go)” just last month.
Rounding out the line-up will be spoken word poet and public speaker, Wali Shah who has reached audiences throughout the world including at WE Day and singer Krystle Dos Santos who has made a name for herself on the local scene by combining original soul music with beloved Motown classics made famous by such legends as Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder and The Supremes.
This year’s hosts will include Global BC’s Chris Gailus & Sophie Lui, CKNW’s Lynda Steele & Niki Reitmayer and CFOX’s Karen Khunkhun along with Variety kids, Bryan Hu and 2018 Variety Red Heart Award Winner, Esabella Strickland. The eight-hour telecast will also feature children who Variety has helped as well as updates on the families introduced during last October’s Variety Week.
Donations to the Variety Show of Hearts Telethon can be made by calling toll-free at 310-KIDS and also online at variety.bc.ca or by texting “KIDS” to 45678 to make an automatic $20 contribution.
Miss604 is the proud sponsor of the #ShowOfHearts Social Lounge and I am the Secretary of the Board of Directors for Variety – The Children’s Charity of BC. You can donate to my personal #ShowOfHearts campaign online here »
Vancouver Opera’s 2018/2019 season and festival presents a new production of Puccini’s La Bohème that is designed as an enormous vintage postcard of Paris. It’s an extravagant presentation of the greatest love story, arriving just in time for Valentine’s Day.
La Bohème
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre (630 Hamilton St, Vancouver)
When: February 14, 16, 19, & 21 at 7:30pm and February 24 at 2:00pm
The curtain rises on a modern-day flea market, with tourists taking selfies, sellers touting their wares and an accordion duo entertaining the crowd. Amid the bustle, a lone visitor puts a record on a vintage gramophone from which plays the opening bars of Giacomo Puccini’s famous opera, transporting the audience back in time.
Canadian designer and director duo André Barbe and Renaud Doucet – the team behind VO’s Turandot in 2017 – has created a beautiful and gloriously over-the-top production, first seen at the Scottish Opera where it was highly successful. The setting is updated to the interwar years of the 1920s when American artists and writers flocked to Paris to live the bohemian life.
Literally meaning ‘the bohemians’, this tragic love story of passion, poetry and poverty, with uplifting humorous moments, features soprano France Bellemare, tenor Yosep Kang and baritone Phillip Addis and is directed by world-renowned conductor Judith Yan.
Win Tickets
I have a pair of tickets to give away to the performance on February 19th at 7:30pm. Here’s how you can enter to win:
[clickToTweet tweet=”RT to enter to win tickets to La Boheme, presented by Vancouver Opera #BohemeVO @VancouverOpera http://ow.ly/1WPF30npx0e” quote=” Click to enter via Twitter” theme=”style6″]
I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Tuesday, January 29, 2018. While La Bohéme is sung in Italian, English SURTITLES™ will be projected above the stage.
Follow Vancouver Opera on Twitter and Facebook for more information about the season and festival.
The Cherie Smith JCC Jewish Book Festival will warm up your winter nights with an exciting roster of writers from across Canada, the US, Israel and New Zealand. This is one of Vancouver’s leading cultural and literary events, attracting a large and varied audience of over 5,000 people of all ages.
JCC Jewish Book Festival
When: February 9-14, 2019 Where: Most events take place at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver (950 West 41st Ave at Oak), as well as in outreach locations in the Lower Mainland.
This highly popular community-wide event brings together prominent and emerging Jewish writers and non-Jewish writers on Jewish subject matter.
The six days of the Festival are packed with inspiring and entertaining literary events including unique meet-the-author opportunities, readings and panel discussions, the annual book club event, children’s and youth authors, wellness and food subjects and two onsite bookstores – new and used, open throughout the week. There is something of interest for every age group and literary taste.
Win Tickets
Cartoon Mike Reiss and Mike Reiss!
I have tickets to give away to the closing night presentation featuringMike Reiss, author of “Springfield Confidential: Jokes, Secrets and Outright Lies From a Lifetime Writing for The Simpsons“!
Four-time Emmy winner Mike Reiss—who has worked on The Simpsons continuously since episode one in 1989—shares stories, scandals, and gossip about working with America’s most iconic cartoon family ever. Reiss explains how the episodes are created, and provides an inside look at the show’s writers, animators, actors and celebrity guests.
Here’s how you can enter to win tickets to this event on February 14th:
Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
Click below to post an entry on Twitter
[clickToTweet tweet=”RT to enter to win tickets to the @JCCVancouver Book Festival event featuring @mikereisswriter http://ow.ly/HrD730noNKS” quote=” Click to enter via Twitter” theme=”style6″]
The JCC Jewish Book Festival program guide is available at select locations throughout the Lower Mainland. Follow the festival on Twitter and Facebook for more info.
I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Monday, January 28, 2019.
