Feature Image Credit: audainmuseum.com
From ancient times, when museums were literally “temples dedicated to the Muses,” institutions all over the world have likewise inspired visitors in the exchange of culture and mutual understanding. Since 1977, International Museum Day has been recognized annually to celebrate the vital role museums play in our shared human experience.
Each year a theme is selected that resonates through museums everywhere. This year, on May 18, that theme is The Future of Museums in Rapidly Changing Communities, which is all about how museums can navigate and contribute to the social, technological and environmental shifts we are all experiencing.
It’s a great day to get out and explore the region’s past and follow that thread to the future of our collective experience.
Surrey
Museum of Surrey
This museum is a local hub for wonder, delight and fun for the whole family. The interactive and ever-changing Museum of Surrey tells the story of the community with a showcase on Indigenous learning, global immigration, diverse communities and sustainability. Highlights include the Photo Mural Project, a 46-by-15-foot mural that depicts a river, an important connection between communities here, from over 2,000 photos submitted by the public. The Surrey Stories Gallery is full of displays both historic and contemporary, from tales of farming to first responders to an authentic ‘50s living room.
Photo Credit: surrey.ca
Burnaby
Burnaby Village Museum
Ten acres at Deer Lake Park is where history comes to life at the Burnaby Village Museum—an open-air museum where visitors can explore and interact with exhibitions in and among period-specific homes, businesses and a traditional schoolhouse. It’s an entertaining and educational glimpse of life as it used to be in the early part of the past century. The Indigenous learning house, as well, offers a better understanding of the significance of this land from an Indigenous perspective.
Photo credit: burnabyvillagemuseum.ca
Vancouver
Museum of Anthropology
Housed in a stunning architectural gem at the University of British Columbia, MOA brings the voices of Indigenous and global communities into conversation with visitors from all over the world through fascinating exhibitions, bold programming and one of the largest collections of historic art and cultural artifacts in Canada. On right now is Nuxalk Strong, Dancing Down the Eyelashes of the Sun, a powerful display of healing and sovereignty by the Nuxalk Nation that honours their ancestors and lays a path for their future.
Photo credit: moa.ubc.ca
Museum of Vancouver (MOV)
Vancouver is full of stories from the myriad of cultures that have called this place home over the years. You can find plenty of them at MOV in the heart of Kitsilano. MOV digs for a deeper understanding of Vancouver’s people through their shared experiences, while at the same time advocating for a prosperous future for the city and its connection to the rest of the world. Right now, you’ll find the “living exhibition,” Unity Indigenous Plant Garden, a botanical oasis in the middle of the museum that connects two exhibitions featuring traditional knowledge of our natural surroundings from the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam,) skwxwu7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
Photo credit: Museum of Vancouver
Vancouver’s North Shore
Museum & Archives of North Vancouver (MONOVA)
Explore the rich history of Vancouver’s North Shore through the stories of its people and land that inspired, nurtured and shaped the diverse cultures that reside here. The Permanent Gallery exhibition focuses on themes of Passion for Place, Connections, and Industry and Enterprise, blending physical artifacts with digital content. Their Feature Exhibition, on now until June 1, is Echoes of Memory, which weaves together untold, yet universal, stories of aging, memory loss and dementia, and features work from Canadian artist Karen Bondarchuk.
Photo credit: monova.ca
Whistler
Whistler Museum
Renowned for its lively celebration of “mountain life,” the Whistler Museum’s mission is to collect, preserve, document and share how natural history has mixed with the human experience in this part of BC and how it has grown from humble beginnings to one of the top four-season resort destinations in the world. Starting in June, the museum presents the Valley of Dreams Walking Tour in which local guides recount stories of Whistler’s dreamseekers on a leisurely stroll through vibrant Whistler Village.
Photo credit: whistlermuseum.org
Audain Art Museum
Canada’s newest art museum opened 6 years ago; the Audain has quickly become a world-class collection of art by prominent Canadian and international artists. Nearly 200 works of art span the 18th century to the present day and feature an impressive collection of Northwest Coast First Nations and Indigenous masks, as well as a career-spanning retrospective of work by Emily Carr. Their latest exhibition, entitled The Coast Mountains features photographs from internationally acclaimed Canadian artist Edward Burtynsky that at once capture the pristine grandeur of BC’s natural environment and the risk to it imposed by climate change.
Photo credit: audainartmuseum.com