12.07.2015

Year in review:
September 2014- August 2015

Each year our annual report gives us cause for reflection. A chance to look back on a busy year: the things that surprised us, the things that delighted us, the things that made a difference in children's lives. We're thrilled to share these highlights, showing some of the projects we made happen in the last year, from September 2014 to August 2015.
SEPTEMBER 2014: Twelve teens took on a year-long clay project for the new TELUS Garden building. Receiving full scholarships, the students created a stunning site-specific installation. This picture shows a close up of the clay pieces.
SEPTEMBER 2014: Our Chalk Walls debuted for Culture Days 2014 – and Granville island visitors continue to consider what love means to them. The project was inspired by the global art movement, Before I Die.
SEPTEMBER 2014: Young visual artists created an interactive mural for Vancouver Design Week, allowing the public to peek into our art studios. Pictured, are students creating the mural.
OCTOBER 2014: Advanced drawing and painting students exhibited in collaboration with Vancouver Opera's Stickboy, based on the book by Shane Koyczan. The powerful exhibition examined “how teens respond to bullying – a heavy subject matter,” said Roxanne Gagnon (pictured), Artistic Director, Visual & Media Arts.
DECEMBER 2014: Local and international celebrities, including Sir Anthony Hopkins (pictured) and Julia Stiles, supported Arts Umbrella for #GivingTuesday. Celebrities took to social media to raise funds for Arts Umbrella’s free-of-charge community programs. “The arts have made an incredible impact on my life and being able to give back is a great feeling,” said actor Aleks Paunovic. “It’s a great cause worthy of our support.”
JANUARY 2015: Noah Diguangco, 9, inspired Arts Umbrella staff at the annual Continuous Learning Committee event with his compelling TEDxKids talk, Kids Can Too. “I've learned to look for opportunity and not to be scared to do something I haven’t done before,” said Noah (pictured), who started his first business at age 7. Noah’s mom, Kellie Diguangco, teaches Early Learning Visual Arts at Arts Umbrella.
MARCH 2015: Instructors Jessica Jang and Jason Wright travelled to Bogotá, Colombia to teach more than 26 students for CulturART Exchange – a new initiative created by school Liceo Boston and supported by the Vancouver Biennale. This photo captures one of the lessons. Then in July 2015, Arts Umbrella welcomed three of the Colombian students for two weeks of teen intensive programs, sponsored by the Buschlen Mowatt Nichol Foundation, and an exhibition. “In my heart, it is a dream come true,” said one of the CulturArt students.
APRIL 2015: Alumni, teaching artists, and teen photography students exhibited their work at Remington Gallery during Capture Photography Festival, showing the reach of Arts Umbrella’s 35-years-and-growing legacy. Works included this piece, by artist Jason Wright. It's called: Tragedy of open faced St. Sebastians or The Sacrifice of Artisanal Sandwiches for the Redemption of the Ethical Glutton.
Paul Moniz de Sá, Artistic Director, Theatre & Music
MAY 2015: Ballet BC and Arts Umbrella announced a Memorandum of Understanding aligning their similar, progressive artistic visions for dance. “This affiliation allows Arts Umbrella and Ballet BC to grow our shared vision of bringing new, exciting, and contemporary dance forms to Vancouver and the world,” said Michael Lee, Arts Umbrella Association Board Chair. This photo was taken at an AUDC Season Finale.
JUNE 2015: More than 60 talented young artists received $60,000 in awards at our annual Scholarship Night. Instructors recognized students of all ages, ranging from four-year-old Madeline Graham (pictured), who twirled her way to the stage, to dance graduates pursuing professional careers. “It helps make an art form we’ve worked on for 18 years possible,” said dancer Haley Heckethorn, who received an RBC Award.
JULY 2015: About 150,000 charity-minded gamers helped Vancouver-based video game developer Relic Entertainment raise about $75,000 for Arts Umbrella. In just seven days, gamers purchased thousands of pay-what-you-want digital content bundles through Humble Bundle. The funding will benefit hundreds of kids, but a group of Media Arts students also got an insider tour and demo at Relic’s Yaletown studio – and met this rather gruesome orc. “Making video games is really fun,” Justin Dowdeswell, GM at Relic Entertainment, told the students. “So have fun!”
AUGUST 2015: Every summer, Arts Umbrella’s International Summer Dance Intensive brings together world-renowned teachers, choreographers and repetiteurs to offer a dance experience that leads dancers to reach their potential. This year, the intensive program took place with venue partner Simon Fraser University, providing four world-class studios located in the School of Contemporary Arts' downtown campus. “The space elevated the program,” said Artistic Director, Artemis Gordon.
AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2015: Under a brand new program, teens collaborated with and learned about the local art community through an ambitious series of workshops at Arts Umbrella, the Contemporary Art Gallery, and SFU School for the Contemporary Arts. “It's a big deal for the arts community in Vancouver,” said Roxanne Gagnon, Artistic Director, Visual & Media Arts. The program wrapped up with a one-day exhibition at the Contemporary Art Gallery. Here, you see the exhibition setup in action.
Each year our annual report gives us cause for reflection. A chance to look back on a busy year: the things that surprised us, the things that delighted us, the things that made a difference in children's lives. We're thrilled to share these highlights, showing some of the projects we made happen in the last year, from September 2014 to August 2015. 1 / 16