Inside Van What's Happening Nov. 30, 2019

East Van Culture Crawl

Sponsored by Beedie, the developer that owns the studios at 1000 Parker Street, the 23rd annual Eastside Culture Crawl took place over the weekend of Nov. 14-17. Visual artists and artisans of all stripes opened their East Vancouver studios to the public, and with more than 50,000 attendees, the event just keeps on getting more successful each year.

The Audain Art Museum’s Emily Carr exhibition

Up in Whistler, discover the fascinating “Emily Carr: Fresh Seeing – French Modernism and the West Coast” exhibition, sponsored by Cressey, along with RBC. The exhibition of more than 50 paintings, watercolours and sketches investigates the fertile period of Carr’s life when she visited England and France with her sister, and studied with various instructors, including Henry William Phelan Gibb, who influenced her and broke her bonds with her previously conservative training. This fascinating exhibition joins the Audain Art Museum’s incredible permanent collection of the art of British Columbia from the late 18th century to the present, including an important collection of 19th and 20th century First Nations’ masks. Founded by Polygon founder Michael Audain, this can’t-be-missed art collection is housed in a stunningly modern floating wooden building designed by Patkau Architects. The Emily Carr: Fresh Seeing exhibition runs until Jan. 19, 2020.

Inspire Jericho

On the evening of Nov. 7, a packed crowd joined together at the Arts Club’s Granville Island Stage for the fourth of the “Inspire Jericho Talks” series sponsored by the City of Vancouver and the MST Corporation. The series aims to offer potential solutions to urban challenges in the context of planning the 90-acre parcel of land known as the Jericho Lands, currently jointly owned by the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations. This talk featured keynote speaker Magnus Schön of Kod Arkitekter of Stockholm, who explained examples of urban developments in Sweden and abroad that combine landscape and architecture to support resilient, inclusive and sustainable communities. He emphasized using natural materials, such as wood, and employing complex adaptive systems that can evolve to meet a population’s changing needs while respecting the environment. His Seven Principles of Resilience include prioritizing walking and cycling over driving, clever storm-water management and a carbon neutral building strategy.

The Holland grand opening

Holland Park is a jewel in Surrey Centre, right at the end of the Skytrain route connecting Surrey City Centre to the rest of the Metro Vancouver area. On a sunny Nov. 9, Townline’s newest project, The Holland, was unveiled at the top of Holland Park. Visitors to the new presentation centre enjoyed espresso, grilled cheese sandwiches and tacos from the food trucks outside, before touring the new show home, and hearing the exciting details of the new development. Since the opening, the presentation centre has welcomed more than 800 prospective homebuyers intrigued by the central location, proximity to greenspaces and urban amenities, and an elegant and functional design.

Holiday cheer

HAVAN coat drive. The Homebuilders Association Vancouver members have been providing drop-off locations for people to donate lightly used and new coats since 1995, in support of the Lower Mainland and Surrey Christmas bureaus.

This year, the campaign runs until Dec. 1, with 48 HAVAN member companies offering 63 drop-off locations across 13 municipalities. Drop-off locations can be found at https://havan.ca/event/coatsforkids/

The Gryphon Living toy drive supports the Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau (LMCB), a local registered non-profit organization that distributes toys, clothes and food vouchers to more than 1,000 low-income families in Vancouver during the holiday season. To help, drop your (unwrapped) toy donations before Dec. 12 at the Gryphon Living office from Monday to Friday, between 9 and 5, 6107 West Boulevard. Questions? Contact Gryphon Living at 604.620.8296 or info@gryphonliving.com

Did You Know?

CMHC’s most recent forecast said townhomes and condos priced under $700,000 are expected to see the strongest demand over the next two years. “Meanwhile, conditions in the single-detached market are expected to remain soft, particularly in the higher-end segment of the market.”