VMF2022 Neighbourhood: Cambie Village
Cambie Village, “the Heart of Vancouver”, runs along Cambie from West 5th to King Edward Avenue, and includes City Hall, an Art Deco architectural masterpiece. While it is one of the smaller neighbourhoods in Vancouver, it is no less important. Cambie is a key transit connector to the 99 B-Line and the Canada Line SkyTrain, and home to one of Vancouver’s busiest intersections at Cambie and Broadway.
This was the second year Cambie Village took part in Vancouver Mural Festival. The Cambie Village Business Association funded the painting of two new murals in the neighbourhood, in addition to the four pieces from 2021. Take a mural walk along Cambie Street to discover the lively and colourful murals animating Cambie Village!
Keep following Cambie south to end up at Queen Elizabeth Park and enjoy a stunning view of Vancouver from the city’s highest point.
Stseelhtun & S-hwu-hwa'us
Artist: Charlene Johnny
Artist Statement: For thousands of years, the Quw’utsun Hwulmuhw lived in harmony and abundance on the land and the Salish Sea. The young took care of the elders and everyone had their place and duties. Young men went out to the river to catch stseelhtun to feed the community. Over time the stseelhtun population dwindled. Qwunus was posted at the mouth of the river eating up all the stseelhtun, causing an imbalance in the ecosystem. The only solution was to find the exiled man who could shapeshift into S-hwu-hwa’us creating monstrous thunder and lightning storms. The men set out in their canoes in search of S-hwu-hwa’us. They discovered him on the fourth day living alone on a mountainside and told him what was happening. The man transformed and rose to the sky as storm clouds formed. Thunder echoed through the lands with each flap of his wings. Lightning cracked as he opened his eyes and swooped down, scooping up Qwunus in his talons and carrying it away. The clouds cleared and the Hwulmuhw rejoiced as the stseelhtun returned to the river.
“bone and spirit anchored by gold spikes”
Artist: Michael Robert Bock
Artist Statement: This is a painting about the act of painting. It is about the history of painting, the process of painting, the doubt and elation of painting. It's about the resonance of colour communed through painting and tapping into the source of all creation through the act of painting. It's about the uncomfortable positions you put yourself in while painting. It's about mourning the horror of it all while celebrating the beauty of it all through the medium of paint. It's about laughing at the absurdity and building meaning/purpose in one's life through one's craft. Bock’s craft happens to be painting.
MEET THE CAMBIE VILLAGE MURAL ARTISTS:
