Artists have been announced for four of the stations along the new Broadway Subway line currently under construction.
Of the six stations being built for the new line running from VCC-Clark station to Arbutus Street and West Broadway artists or art teams have been selected for the Great Northern Way-Emily Carr, Mount Pleasant, Broadway-City Hall, and South Granville stations.
They are Lou Sheppard (who'll work with Emily Carr University of Art + Design students); Sylvan Hamburger; a team called Theatre Replacement along with Vanessa Kwan, Remy Siu and Cindy Mochizuki; and Derek Root.
Sheppard and the students will take on the Great Northern Way-Emily Carr station which will be built adjacent to the university's campus on Great Northern Way. Sheppard, who was born in Nova Scotia (where he currently lives) has exhibited large form art across Canada including at Toronto's biennial, Simon Fraser University and Saskatoon. The transmasculine artist is also internationally recognized, with residencies in Paris and Brooklyn and an upcoming collaborative exhibition in Turku, Finland.
Hamburger, who grew up in Mount Pleasant, will be working in his childhood neighbourhood, designing a piece for Mount Pleasant station. He often uses printmaking techniques.
The Theatre Replacement team (James Long and Maiko Yamamoto) will be working with Kwan, Siu and Mochizuki on the Broadway-City Hall Station. Artists involved with this station have a history of interactive and video installations.
Vancouver-born Root will be designing a piece for the South Granville station. The graduate of Emily Carr works with abstract geometric designs to play with perceptions of architecture and space.
All four projects were selected before the work begins on building the new stations. Artists will work with those designing the stations to integrate their installations. Concepts will be shared at a later date.
In addition to this group of artists, more art is expected in collaboration with local First Nations.
"The Province is working with Musqueam Indian Band, Squamish Nation and Tsleil-Waututh Nation on a separate and parallel process for Indigenous art for the Broadway Subway Project," states the province in a press release. "The Cultural Recognition Program includes art across six stations, with prominent Indigenous artworks planned for Arbutus, Oak-VGH and Great Northern Way-Emily Carr stations."
The Broadway Subway is expected to open in 2025.
