If you’ve been longing to be a patron of local art and history, you’re in luck!
After an almost three-month closure, the Vancouver Maritime Museum (VMM) is looking forward to opening their doors to the public on June 11. The museum will be open Thursdays to Sundays from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. with a solid health and safety plan and incredible new exhibitions.
Committed to their social responsibility of providing a safe and welcoming environment, VMM is taking a measured approach to their reopening to ensure the wellbeing of staff and visitors. Safety measures include plexiglass barriers for contactless ticket sales, direction flow through galleries to ensure proper social distancing, and enhanced cleaning protocols on site.
E.J. Hughes, Above Saanich. Photo: Vancouver Maritime Museum
The VMM grand reopening will introduce a new summer exhibition. Curated by Duncan MacLeod, By the Shore: Maritime B.C. in Paintings invites patrons on a tour through time and space along the B.C. coast, presenting maritime scenes of our beautiful province.
By the Shore will provide locals with an opportunity to admire the natural landscapes of seaside B.C. while staying close to home.The experience begins in the heart of Vancouver and its port. Visitors then travel across the Lower Mainland, to Vancouver Island and finally the northern coast of B.C.
The exhibition displays artwork from recent years as well as those from the early days of ship travel in the province. The exhibition includes works by Emily Carr, E.J. Hughes, Harry Heine, and artists such as Ronald Jackson, Spencer Percival Judge, and Thomas William Fripp who were influential in the early days of painting in B.C.
“Lessons from the Arctic”. Photo: Vancouver Maritime Museum
Even if you cannot venture into the museum just yet, VMM will continue to serve those who are unable to visit with alternative programming options.
The museum will continue to deliver #VirtualVMM, a program of online events and resources that allows patrons to engage with the museum from the safety of their homes.
Additionally, a free outdoor exhibition sponsored by the Norwegian Embassy, Lessons from the Arctic: How Roald Amundsen Won the Race to the South Pole, is on display in the windows of the St. Roch shelter. The public can view the installation without entering the building.
As VMM Executive Director Joost Schokkenbroek says of the Lessons from the Arctic, “this exhibition is a fitting offering for our times as it examines the isolated life of the great Norwegian explorer in the unforgiving polar regions.”
For more info about Vancouver Maritime Museum, visit vanmaritime.com.
