Grade 1 students of Henry Hudson Elementary in Vancouver show off their a-maze-ing hand-made puppets.

The Vancouver Biennale is building a legacy of education by using art as a catalyst to learning across disciplines. Our Big Ideas program is designed to nurture active engagement and inquiry based learning experiences through the Vancouver Biennale’s many public art installations. Paired with an eclectic and talented array of art educators, students focus on critical thinking, knowledge and skills development through the process of experiential learning. Since the students have been working so hard over the past few months, we thought it was time to give you an update on what a few of them have been up to.

The kindergarten to Grade 7 students of Henry Hudson Elementary School and Grade 10 students of Kitsilano Secondary drew their inspiration from Yue Minjun’s “A-Maze-ing Laughter” at Morton Park in Vancouver’s West End. The goal? To share, reflect, and respond to the BIG IDEA of Mindful Expression. Working with art educators Donna Sheh, Brendan McLeod and Lorraine White-Wilkinson, the students explored the following questions: How can we mindfully express our feelings and ideas? How our verbal and non-verbal expressions impact on others? How can we raise awareness of personal roles and responsibilities?

In a dialogue session on May 2, the students presented their ideas through puppetry, song, dance, visual arts and spoken word in the gymnasium of Henry Hudson Elementary. The photos tell the story better than we can! Take a look.

From left to right - Katherine Tong, Cristina Fogale (Kits Secondary Teacher), Brendan McLeod (spoken word artist), Gabriela Novotny (Henry Hudson teacher), Lorraine White-Wilkinson (Dance artist), Donna Sheh (Visual Artist), Nicola Twa and Aron Rosenberg - both UBC Student Teachers.

There’s so much creativity and imagination in these students! Watch for a video from this project to be featured at the Dalai Lama Heart Mind Conference at UBC on May 10, and stay tuned for further updates from other participating schools around British Columbia.

Enjoying the view from Michel Goulet's "Echoes" at Vancouver's Kits Beach.

Vancouver’s legacy of great public art just grew quite a bit richer. Continuing from the momentum of Yue Minjun’s “A-Maze-Ing Laughter” last summer, the Vancouver Biennale welcomes Michel Goulet’s “Echoes” as the latest public artwork to find a permanent home in Vancouver.

Situated in front of the Boathouse Restaurant at Kits Beach, “Echoes” is a series of 16 one-of-a-kind stainless steel chairs created exclusively for the Vancouver Biennale in 2005 by Canadian artist Michel Goulet. Each chair is unique in design and has an inscription in French and English reflecting aphorisms of everyday emotions and dreamlike thoughts. The chairs have been positioned to encourage human interaction and communication and installed so that when sunlight hits them at the perfect angle, the phrases and aphorisms are projected onto the ground below as one large poem. The artwork was originally part of the Vancouver Biennale’s 2005-2007 exhibition, then re-installed at this site by the artist in 2010.

Michel Goulet with "Echoes" in 2010.

One of Québec’s best-known sculptors, Michel Goulet uses traditional techniques to create installations based on recognizable everyday objects that encourage public participation. He has an extensive exhibition history including representing Canada at the Venice Biennale in 1988. He received Quebec’s Prix Paul-Émile-Borduas in 1990, Canada’s Governor General’s Award in 2008 and will receive the Order of Canada in May 2013. He has taught at the University of Ottawa and at Université du Québec à Montréal and has designed sets for theatre and opera.

“Michel Goulet represents exactly what the Biennale means when we talk about using public art as a foundation for community building,” notes Barrie Mowatt, President of the Vancouver Biennale. “With Echoes he turns the everyday chair into a poetic sculpture that invites us to come together to interact as neighbours. We are inspired by his multi-disciplinary approach to sculpture, poetry and theatre design, and his many accomplishments internationally. As the second major legacy gift that the Biennale has facilitated from this exhibition, Goulet is a great Canadian artist and his iconic chair sculpture a great addition to this city.”

Tomorrow, join the Vancouver Biennale and artist Michel Goulet, along with representatives from Vancouver Park Board and the City of Vancouver for the official dedication and the Deputy Mayor’s proclamation of Michel Goulet Day in recognition of the artist’s significant contribution to the city.

Date: Tuesday April 16, 2013

Time: 10:30 – 11:00 AM

Location: Kits Beach in front of the Boathouse Restaurant

#MichelGouletDay

This donation is made possible through the generosity of the artist, the BUSCHLEN MOWATT FOUNDATION and the Vancouver Biennale Legacy Foundation.

Lifeguards hauling the row boat into storage in front of The Boathouse Kitsilano, with Michel Goulet's "Echoes" in the foreground.

Dennis Oppenheim's "Device To Root Out Evil" in Vancouver in 2005. Photo: Dan Fairchild Photography

After five years at Calgary’s Glenbow Museum, the late Dennis Oppenheim’s groundbreaking sculptural installation Device To Root Out Evil will soon be in search of a new home.  Originally part of the 2005-2007 Vancouver Biennale, the sculpture had a controversial tenure in Vancouver despite widespread critical acclaim. After a group of Coal Harbour residents complained about the work obstructing sightlines to the harbour, Device To Root Out Evil was eventually sent to Calgary’s Glenbow Museum on a five year loan. The Glenbow Museum placed the sculpture in Ramsay, Calgary’s most creative neighbourhood where it has been enjoyed, engaged and celebrated ever since.

As far as artists go, Dennis Oppenheim is iconic. Coming out of the conceptual art movement in the 1960s, he is the personification of his time. If you’ve spent any time in Toronto, you’ll be familiar with his 2009 sculpture Still Dancing in the Distillery District. His work has exhibited in galleries and museums around the world including the Tate Gallery, Stedelijk Museum, Whitney Museum of American Art, The Museum of Modern Art, and Musee d’Art Moderne, and was recognized by the Vancouver Biennale for Lifetime Achievement in 2007. Since his death in 2011, his art is more revered than ever.

Subsequently, as part of our 2013-2015 exhibition, the Vancouver Biennale is exploring options to bring this important piece of art back home. Come on, Vancouver! We know you’re ready for this. We want it back! Let us know if you do too. There’s strength in numbers, so spread the word and show us your support. It’s time to bring Device To Root Out Evil back to Vancouver.

The late Dennis Oppenheim with "Device To Root Out Evil" in 2005. Photo: Dan Fairchild Photography

2005-2007 Vancouver Biennale participants John Henry, Emilie Brzezinski, Markus Schaller, Barrie Mowatt, Dennis Oppenheim, Khang Pham New and Sorel Etrog pose with Oppenheim's "Device to Root Out Evil" in Vancouver in 2005. Photo: Dan Fairchild Photography

As the only two Canadian artists to win La Biennale di Venezia Award (in 2001), Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller enjoy an unparalleled notoriety in Canada, the UK, the USA and Brazil. Their work, often audio-based installations and walking pieces, are the product of a marriage that has lasted for 30 years and began in hallways of the University of Alberta’s Masters in Visual Art program. In addition to La Biennale, they have exhibited work at Documenta 13, the National Gallery of Canada, the Art Gallery of Alberta, and represented Canada in both the São Paulo Biennial in 1998 and the 6th Istanbul Biennial in 1999.

Having recently seen Cardiff and Bures Miller’s installation in Brazil’s Inhotim, the Vancouver Biennale’s Barrie Mowatt recent travelled with Brazilian curator Marcello Dantas to connect with the two artists in their North Okanagan studio. There, Mowatt and Dantas discussed areas of possible collaboration for the 2013-2015 Vancouver Biennale and beyond.

George Bures Miller and Janet Cardiff in conversation with Marcello Dantas in their North Okanagan studio.

For more about Cardiff and Bures Miller, check out their website or John Wray’s fantastic profile on them in the New York Times.