Where Plants Speak: A Guided Walk with Cease Wyss
Sat Jun 27, 2026 | 2–4:30 PM
Learn about local plants with Dr. T’uy’t’tanat Cease Wyss on a guided walk through X̱wáýx̱way (Stanley Park), followed by a shared reflection at the Vancouver Art Gallery.
Join Indigenous artist, ethnobotanist and knowledge keeper Dr. T’uy’t’tanat Cease Wyss for a guided plant walk that interweaves ecology, storytelling and Indigenous knowledge. The program will begin at the Stanley Park Field House, where Wyss is currently a resident artist.
Together, participants will move through the landscapes of X̱wáýx̱way (Stanley Park) as Cease shares teachings about the plants that sustain and shape these ecosystems. Through stories and language connected to Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and Stó:lō territories, participants will be invited to slow down, listen closely and observe how the land carries memory and knowledge.
During the walk, each person will be asked to notice a single detail—a texture, sound, colour or subtle gesture—in the environment and carry it back as an observation.
Afterward, the group will return together via public transportation to the Vancouver Art Gallery. Here, participants will gather for a sharing session and translate their observations from the walk into words or a drawing at SANCTUARY: The Ancient Forest Experience, part of the exhibition Future Geographies: Art in the Century of Climate Change, for a sharing session.
Meeting location: The group will gather in front of the Second Beach concession stand. Directions »
Capacity for this event is limited. Registration is required.
Tickets include participation in the guided plant walk, transit to the Vancouver Art Gallery, Gallery admission and the facilitated reflection session.
Free for Circles of Giving Members, $10 for Experiences Members, $25 for Ideas Members, and $50 for Access Pass Holders and the general public.
If cost is a barrier to you or if you have any access requests for this event, please email learn@vanartgallery.bc.ca or call 604 662 4700.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Dr T’uy’t’tanat Cease Wyss (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh/Sto:Lo/Hawaiian/Swiss) is an interdisciplinary artist who works with digital media, writing, performance and land-based remediations. Her works focuses on sustainability, permaculture techniques and Coast Salish cultural elements. It has also included themes of ethnobotany, Indigenous language revival, Salish weaving and digital media technology. In 2022, Wyss was awarded an honorary PhD from Emily Carr University of Art + Design and in 2023 was awarded an artist residency in Stanley Park’s Field House for the four years. She will be infusing all elements of her diverse practice into this time spent reconnecting to her ancestors whose spirits remain a part of this forest and shoreline.