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About Exhibitions

Exhibitions encourage public engagement, bridging cultures and building strong communities through the arts.

2017 Art in Community
January - December 2017
North Vancouver

Diego Samper – Dreamscapes

City Atrium Gallery

January 4 – March 27

“The substance of a landscape is the dialogue between its elements: water, earth, wood, sky and light. At its most abstract, the grammar of landscape- a sense of place in terms of form, structure, space and relationships- allows us to explore the universal patterns of natural flow and the way its elements endlessly help shape one another. Flow, blood, sap, tears, rain, life. We are living water.”


Clancy Dennehy

City Atrium Gallery

March 29 – June 19

Parade of Boats was a series of wooden half hulls representing ships, ferries and tugboats from early steam powered times right up to the present with the new LNG/electric ferry, the Seaspan Swift. These whimsical, yet recognizable hand-crafted models aimed to draw interest and attention to the common ocean vessels seen in the Port of Vancouver.


Diane Roy

City Atrium Gallery

June 21 – September 11

Installation is a marine metaphor, in the tones of black and white that alludes to life and death. The absence of colours is met to convey this message. Ramification emphasizes life and proliferation in order to exude feelings such as wonder and peace. The use of a black recycled commercial fishing net, that is weaved in a raw kind of manner intents to symbolize death and the world of confusion in which we live. “Devious Snare” is an evocation of the alarming, destructive methods used in commercial fishing, which is largely responsible for the depletion of our oceans.


Larissa Blokhuis – Inviting

City Atrium Gallery

September 13 – December 4

Larissa Blokhuis highlighted the unseen connection and mutually beneficial relationship between trees and fungus. Through glasswork and mixed media, Larissa created an installation that celebrated the relationships between fungi and trees.


Bev Ellis – Together: Broken

City Atrium Gallery

December 6, 2017 – February 23, 2018

“My distressed, carved surfaces express a metaphor for the human condition and nature, where beauty is found in brokenness […] When viewed together at a distance, though different in many ways, the sculptures bear a striking similarity to one another. Seen as a whole, there is conveyed a sense of belonging, a suggestion of being shoulder to shoulder in unison. Carved into the pieces are textures and words, symbolic of the complex layers of each of our lives. Some marks do not reveal themselves without time and care taken to find them.  There is a story in each one. As in a wood, when looking closely, it becomes possible to really see, awakening an awareness of true beauty and value.” – Bev Ellis


Douglas Nicolle

District Foyer Gallery

February 15 – April 3

Douglas Nicolle was born in Vancouver, British Columbia in 1952.  He now resides in Burnaby, B.C.  He is largely self-taught and has been painting since high school.  He works with acrylic paint on canvas and paper.  His primary influences are Mark Rothko, Richard Diebenkorn and Willem De Kooning and Lucien Freud.


Ron Holzman

District Foyer Gallery

February 15 – April 3

“The coming together of these cast away objects into the wholeness of human form is a metaphor for the human condition and the mix of psychological materials and memories that compose who we are.” – Ron Holzman


Douglas Rae

District Foyer Gallery

April 5 – May 29

“At age 10, the first painting I kept, ‘East Coast Harbour’, was in watercolour on cardboard which came with a dry-cleaned shirt.  Later, an artist friend of my Father’s, seemed to believe I had a talent and presented me with a starter set to paint in oils.  […] I did little painting until 25 years ago when I took workshops with Irene Poskitt.  These were followed by two advanced courses with the ‘Federation of Canadian Artists.’  Then, for ten years, I took workshops with many credentialed artists including, Alan Wylie, Joyce Pike, Howard Carr, and Mike Svob.” – Douglas Rae


Elizabeth Austin

District Foyer Gallery

April 5 – May 29

“This group of handcrafted boats are collectively called “The Drifters”.  They have been at sea for a long time, sometimes for years, before finding their way to a shore. They have seen the condition of our seas and shorelines. The general theme of their presence is to remind us that the beaches and oceans have been entrusted to us for as long as we are here and it is our responsibility to keep them clean so we may pass the responsibility to those who follow. ” – Elizabeth Austin


Wayne Anderton

District Foyer Gallery

May 31 – July 24

“In loving the beauty of all the life in the oceans of our planet, and in also being an underwater photographer, I aim to capture the beauty above and below the surface to share with you.” – Wayne Anderton


Suzan Marczak

District Foyer Gallery

May 31 – July 24

“Clay as a tactile medium gives great opportunity for creative exploration.  Firing in an atmospheric kiln allows for surprises in the glaze, a rich colour in darker clays, and encourages me to experiment with colour.  I enjoy the sculptural qualities when altering wheel thrown forms, as well as the pleasure of having a satisfying functional object, and strive to incorporate the grace of the natural world.” – Suzan Marczak


Dominique Walker

District Foyer Gallery

July 26 – September 18

Dominique Walker captured childhood wonder and outdoor play in her series Wildhood. The north shore has a backyard of mountains, streams and beaches for kids and families to explore. “There is something magical that happens when you release children into natural environments…boredom evaporates, curiosity and discovery bloom,” says Walker. This Wildhood series celebrated the amazing natural resource at our doorstep and the balance kids find in it. 


Dominique Walker

District Foyer Gallery

July 26 – September 18

“I love the interactions between my fingers and the forming clay, I limit my use of tools because of that. I started making what I called the city boats like a wish of taking all the cities I lived in with me, but now I want anything on them, like people or trees. Some, on the other hand, I leave totally empty to see what they can take; maybe it would be the viewers’ job to fill them with their ideas or dreams.” – Dominique Walker


Marisa Mary Myrah

District Foyer Gallery

September 20 – November 27

“My current body of work titled “Lost birds and small things,” focusses on endangered songbirds and their habitat in Canada and abroad. This has led me to make a contemporary comment on several levels concerning today’s social and environmental landscape. By highlighting that the three major contributors to loss of species are habitat destruction, invasive species, and human development, I am bringing delicate attention to this serious problem.” – Marisa Mary Myrah


Miaad Eshraghi

District Foyer Gallery

September 20 – November 27

“The zippers are symbol of the connection between me and the surrounding world. They are a symbolic representation of how I see and interpret the world.” – Miaad Eshraghi


Barb Pearson – Infoe-Diction

District Foyer Gallery

November 29, 2017 – January 15, 2018

Barb Pearson was born in Edmonton and now resides in Vancouver. Her work blends chaos and harmony, influenced by her diverse and varied life experiences. Particularly compelling to Pearson is the richness in the textures, both visual and emotional, that mixed media evokes. Pearson draws, paints, scrapes, collages, sands and repeats to create her mixed media pieces.


Jodi Stark

District Foyer Gallery

November 29, 2017 – January 15, 2018

Jodi Stark is a designer, beachcomber and woodworker. She finds beauty hidden in old scrape wood and driftwood and then repurposes, refines and shapes it into new and modern pieces of artwork that is functional, stylish and unique.


IDEA School of Design: Reflections Poster Show

Lynn Valley Library

May 15 – July 3

The annual Reflections Poster Show highlighted emerging artists in the IDEA School of Design Program at Capilano University. In 2017, second year students explored a theme that is universal, malleable and diverse: The Body.  Each student created an illustrative or typographic poster interpreting The Body in many ways, from activism to personal storytelling.


Carolina de la Cajiga: Cities in Flux

Lynn Valley Library

May 15 – July 3

“Sometimes it feels as though every time you turn around, a new high-rise has sprung up. A skyline in constant flux. Cranes and construction workers dancing a carefully choreographed ballet. Honking and beeping signalling our “progress.” City planners are limited by deadlines, mountains, and money, but artists are free to do what developers can only dream of—move, reshape, and multiply buildings. Cities in Flux celebrates the people who carry the weight of expansion on their backs, juxtaposed with a complete disregard for reality in urban design.”

With Capture Photography Festival, curated by Caitlin Bryant


Cath Hughes

Lynn Valley Library

July 5 – August 28

Cath Hughes is a British-Canadian contemporary painter currently living and working in Vancouver, BC.  She holds a BFA in Painting from Oxford University, UK, as well as an MA in Museums and Galleries in Education from London University.  Her work is predominantly narrative and landscape-based and draws on mythology, folklore, art history and personal history.


Steve Tornes: Traversing With Photography

Lynn Valley Library

August 30 – October 23

Traversing with Photography was a series that explored Steve Tornes’s travels through Iceland, the Canadian Rockies, Switzerland and local hikes.  With his camera, Steve tries to capture the relationship between viewer and object.


You Are Here 2018 Calendar Exhibition

Lynn Valley Library

August 30 – October 23

12 North Shore scenes visualized by local artists and featured in the North Shore Culture Compass fundraising calendar.

Exhibiting artists: Mohammad Reza Atashzad, Marnie Boullard, Miles Brook, Caroline Chao, Kathy Daley, Ken Dawes, Graham Harrop, Ewa Pluciennik, Vicki Lynn Rae, Myranda Storm, Frank Townsley, and George Wilkinson


Nancie Green

Lynn Valley Library

December 16, 2017 – February 5, 2018

“In kindergarten when my turn came to tell the teacher “what do you want to be when you grow up” I boldly announced that I was going to be “a fairy, with pink and purple wings”! While this destiny was impossible to achieve, creating art that emulated my dreams was to be a close second! […] While I am still not a fairy (with pink and purple wings), amateur photography, computers and Photoshop have given me a world of pixels and light where I realize not only that youthful dream but go far beyond! Now both artist and technician can fly!” – Nancie Green