A new piece of public art has officially been unveiled in East Vancouver.
"Home+Away" mixes art with history and sports. The piece is an homage to Empire Stadium, which once stood on the site in Hastings Park. The massive stadium was a sort of precursor to BC Place, hosting the biggest outdoor sports events and concerts in the city from 1954 until BC Place opened in 1983. It was demolished in 1993.
The new piece of public art brings back a slice of the famed stadium, with a narrow section of stands towering above the fields and track below.
It's an interactive piece, as it acts as stand seating. People can climb around 90 steps up to the top for a view that peeks into Playland next door and looks out across East Vancouver and Burnaby. There are seats as well (it has a maximum capacity of 49 people).
Along with the narrow stands, the top of Home+Away is capped off with a simple scoreboard that says "Home" and "Away" with lights for a score and a digital clock.
The City of Vancouver held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for "Home+Away" on Monday, July 15.
