Asian Heritage Month at the Gallery
Experience the vibrancy of Asian Heritage Month at the Vancouver Art Gallery!
This May, the Vancouver Art Gallery honours Asian Heritage Month with a vibrant lineup of programs and events showcasing the depth and diversity of Asian cultural expression. From Punjabi and Mandarin art tours to weaving workshops, new exhibitions and a world-premiere performance, the Gallery offers a platform for artistic innovation and community connection.
Visitors of all ages, cultures and backgrounds are invited to explore the many facets of Asian identity and creativity through art. In a spirit of reflection and resilience, the program offers a space to come together through art, performance and shared experience.
STATEMENT IN GRIEF AND SOLIDARITY WITH THE FILIPINO COMMUNITY
Performances: Hong Kong Exile | HEAVEN FM
May 15–18, 2025
As part of our Asian Heritage Month programming, the Vancouver Art Gallery is pleased to present the world premiere of HEAVEN FM (2025), a bold new performance by Vancouver–based, interdisciplinary arts company Hong Kong Exile, to be presented in six public performances from May 15 to 18. Blending dance, theatre and multimedia performance, five artists navigate a universe alive with spirit and sound, using low-tech tools to tune into surreal and sacred stories. At once absurd and sublime, HEAVEN FM explores themes of loss, joy and connection in a digitized world.
HEAVEN FM (2025) was developed as part of a residency at the Vancouver Art Gallery from January to May 2025. Hong Kong Exile are the Gallery’s first-ever Performers in Residence, reflecting the Gallery’s ongoing commitment to supporting artists and representing diverse artistic mediums within the museum space. Rooted in Co-Artistic Director Natalie Tin Yin Gan’s reflections on Chinese ancestral ritual, this collaboratively devised work continues Hong Kong Exile’s 13-year journey into the intersection of performance and technology.
Public Tours in Punjabi and Mandarin
May 11 and 25, 2025
On May 11 and 25, delve deeper into the exhibitions Riopelle: Crossroads in Time and Emily Carr: Navigating an Impenetrable Landscape with guided tours in Punjabi and Mandarin. Led by experienced Art Educators, each tour is unique and reflects the guide’s passions and interests. Each 45-minute tour meets in the Gallery’s Forecourt. Tours are free for Members or with Gallery admission.
Art Party
May 24, 2025 | 8–11:30 PM
One of the many highlights of Asian Heritage Month at the Vancouver Art Gallery, Art Party on May 24 offers an unforgettable evening of live performances, DJ sets and immersive art experiences, including performances by Theatre Replacement, Wei Chang and DJ Ephemeral Objects, as well as a hands-on activity with Vancouver’s Community of Adult LEGO Fans, an artist-led talk with Sara Khan and much more. Partygoers will also be among the first to experience the Gallery’s highly anticipated summer exhibitions: Otani Workshop: Monsters in My Head and Written in Clay: From the John David Lawrence Collection—one showcasing contemporary ceramic innovation from Japan, and the other tracing the history of British Columbia’s studio pottery movement.
The Making Place: Explore the Art of Banig Weaving
May 25, 2025 | 11 AM–4 PM
On May 25, discover the beauty and tradition of banig—handwoven mats of the Philippines, predominantly used for sleeping and everyday living. In this hands-on workshop, Art Educator Yvette Salazar will guide you through a simplified banig weaving technique. Using colourful strips of paper, you’ll create your own woven piece to take home. Inspired by long-standing Filipino craft traditions using pandanus leaves, this workshop offers a thoughtful introduction to the cultural and artistic significance of banig weaving—reimagined with accessible materials for all ages.