VMF Wins BC Heritage Award and Announces Black Strathcona Resurgence Project

VMF has won the BC Heritage Honour Award in the Education, Communications & Awareness category for ‘Hope Through Ashes: A Requiem for Hogan’s Alley’, a mural project highlighting the history of Hogan’s Alley and Vancouver’s Black community.

‘Hope Through Ashes: A Requiem for Hogan’s Alley’ is a mural created by artist Anthony Joseph for Vancouver Mural Festival 2020. The project, located on the north face of the Georgia Viaduct) was curated by Krystal Paraboo and managed by VMF Director of Engagement Adrian Sinclair, in partnership with Hogan’s Alley Society. 

The mural’s curatorial vision was to highlight Hogan’s Alley and reclaim space by projecting a historical narrative of the Black community’s presence in Vancouver. This includes a chronological storytelling of the Black community’s emergence, as well as the story of the neighbourhood’s displacement. 

Artist Statement (Anthony Joseph): Hogan’s Alley embodied hope for a thriving united Black community in BC. In destroying Hogan’s Alley, the city of Vancouver destroyed a Black community but not Black culture as it continues to flourish in a diaspora within Vancouver’s cultural fabric. In painting a mural about Hogan’s Alley on the Georgia Viaduct, I am adding art to the very instrument that led to the destruction of Vancouver’s first concentrated Black community. This reflection serves as a somber tone, placing the painting within smoke from the neighborhood’s demolition. Only upon learning of the resilience of the Black community within Hogan’s Alley can hope be conveyed through its former residents, their legacies rising from the ashes. (Download the VMF mobile app for full artist bio and statement)

"I've been wanting to utilize public art to reclaim and educate the public on Vancouver's Black history for a long time. When conceptualizing the initial vision for a mural that told the story of Hogan's Alley, I wanted to ensure it was produced in a manner that enticed the public to engage with this history, and understand the role anti-Blackness played in the demise of these Black communities in Vancouver. Anthony's genius artistry elevated every part of this vision, and residents are absorbed in the beauty and complexity of this mural every single day. I'm looking forward to working with more Black artists to continue reclaiming visibility." - Krystal Paraboo, Curator

This mural was part of Vancouver Mural Festival’s 2020 series ‘Celebrating Black Resurgence,’ which also included 3 other murals by local Black artists (Tafui, Edge Ebenebe and Pearl Low), along with a corresponding Artist Talk during the festival. 

VMF recognizes the importance of sharing the history and cultural heritage of Vancouver’s diverse communities. Since 2016, VMF has consistently collaborated on community projects with many of the city’s underrepresented groups, including Indigenous communities, BIPOC, LGTBTQ+, female-identified artists (45%), youth and more. 

Black Strathcona Resurgence Project (BSRP) is VMF’s latest community endeavor, with the goal of reclaiming visibility and reconciling the erasure and systemic racism endured over time by Black people in Vancouver. VMF is partnering with local Black artists, curators, businesses and communities to embark on a multi-year project centring on Black storytelling through the visual impact of public murals. This is again led by project manager and curator Krystal Paraboo in collaboration with a powerful advisory committee of Black leaders from various academic, artistic and leadership backgrounds.

Black Strathcona Resurgence Project will be a featured part of Vancouver Mural Festival 2021. This year’s festival will take place August 4-22 with 40+ new murals in 10+ neighbourhoods, plus in-person and online performances, tours, talks and workshops. 

Applications for Black Strathcona Resurgence Project Mural Artists and Curator are open until April 30. BSRP details and artist applications can be found here: https://vanmuralfest.ca/bsrp 

The BC Heritage Awards celebrate outstanding achievements and best practices that have impacted and strengthened all forms of heritage as a valued culture resource in communities throughout British Columbia. The award category for Education, Communications and Awareness recognizes excellence in programming that advances the appreciation, understanding, and practice of tangible and intangible cultural heritage.