Vancouver Art Centre

After Middleton Beach, we visited Vancouver Arts Centre which occupies the building of the old Albany Hospital. The construction of the old hospital began in late 1887 to a design of the Government Architect George Temple Poole. "The architecture of the original Albany Cottage Hospital shows the influence of English vernacular (Victorian Tudor) and French country chateaux style. It was in continual use as a hospital right up to 1962 when a new hospital for Albany was built."

There were 2 exhibitions on. The Miracle of Shorebird Migration has some sketches and paintings of different shorebirds by various artists. I was most impressed by RISE! a solo exhibition by Verity Byth.

"RISE! uses stitching, domestic objects, and multimedia to create an interactive space for exploring how women rise in our country. It is inspired by Scott Morrison’s International Women’s Day speech in 2019, in which he stated “We want to see women rise. But we don’t want to see women rise only on the basis of others doing worse”.

Exploring homelessness, work, and the reality of retirement, the pieces turn familiar items and ideas on their heads. A forensic examination of Australian women’s financial inequality, the exhibit is also a celebration of subversive stitching as an act of self-care and community."

I am sure most wives and mothers, in fact most women would identify with the writings on the tags under the shopping bag and the hot water bottle holder. Emotional Labour and Mental Load is not merely unreognised and undervalued, it is so taken for granted. So lovely to see it portrayed.Read more