I was lucky to get in and see the "Hockey Riot Boards" as they were unofficially unveiled today at the Museum Of Vancouver. These are, of course, part of the masking that was used to cover broken windows after the riot at the end of last hockey season - almost a year ago to the day. There are 15 of them being shown at MOV and they represent our city coming to terms with what happened, trying to process it, while apologizing to itself and to the world.
Here's some info about the exhibit and the opening launch event:
One year later – Stanley Cup riot boards from downtown
windows go on display at MOV
(VANCOUVER, BC) – A year after the Stanley Cup Riots of June 15, 2011, the Museum of Vancouver will open Reading the Riot Boards, a small exhibition displaying 15 of the plywood panels used to board up broken windows in downtown.
Boards on display include selections from the windows of the Bay. The exhibition will run from June 15 to September 23, 2012.
For the opening of this small MOV Studio exhbiition, the MOV invites the public to join in dialogue with Vancouver playwright Kevin Loring, City Councillor Andrea Reimer, and photographer Maurice Li in a multi-faceted examination of how the riots altered our collective conscience, spurred new civic conversations, and changed how Vancouverites see themselves and each other. That is, we invite you to pause, reflect, and share in a discussion that asks: “Is this Vancouver?”
The roundtable will include a visual street-view storytelling of events by Maurice Li, excerpts from “The Thin Veneer” a play written as Loring’s response to the riots, and policy insights from Councillor Reimer. A moderated Q&A and closer look at selected boards installed in the MOV Studio will follow.
The event is by donation (suggested $5-10, none turned away for lack of funds) | MOV Members free. RSVP online: http://riotreflections.eventbrite.com/
