In addition to trying new foods, one of the ways I like to immerse myself in the culture of an area is by checking out the local art scene. I love walking the streets, both worn and freshly-paved, checking out street art, large and small.
I’ve detailed some of the street art in Taiwan in a previous post. For this one, I take us to the Rain City to discover the richness of Vancouver art.
The two main places where I sought out art was Granville Island and the Mt. Pleasant area of Vancouver City.
On Granville Island, murals are scattered amongst a variety of factories turned shops. As I was perusing shops and sampling local delicacies like candied salmon, I would occasionally come across art on a side wall or even inside what seemed like a parking structure.
Much of this art appears to be commissioned by the shops nearby.
I found a treasure trove of street art in the Mt. Pleasant area of the city. A yearly mural contest has produced a plethora of art on dozens of structures on and around Main Street between East King Edward Avenue to the south and Terminal Avenue to the north. The addition of all these pieces of street art made the journey along Vancouver’s Graffiti Alley as exciting as an Easter egg hunt.
Art from the Vancouver Mural Festival ranges from abstract to surreal, bold to monochromatic.
There’s something about this one that spoke to me.
It’s little things like this that make me smile.
When I visited, there weren’t too many people along the route. I can imagine that, during the weekend or holidays, the paths stemming from Main Street would be a little more impacted.
This mural was one of the biggest I saw spanning multiple floors.
Paying respect to indigenous culture is big in Vancouver, rightly so.
Getting some 80’s LA-vibe from this one.
Vancouver is a mixing pot of culture, and it shows in much of the street art I saw.
Exeggutor?
Like any of these pieces? Let me know which one you would love to see in person, or if you have any street art from Vancouver to share.