3rd Session: Continous journey and discovery

July 5th, our third day together, and we were blessed with blue skies and warm weather. We began our day at the Jennifer Kostuik Gallery. Catherine had told us earlier that we would get the opportunity to meet and learn about Jennifer, the gallery owner. Jennifer gave us a warm welcome upon our arrival. We spent the first few minutes wandering around the gallery, really soaking up all the artwork. Most of us had the impression that we wouldn't be able to visit commercial galleries on our own, so we really took this time to absorb all the beauty. We figured out later on however, that although very intimidating at times, commercial galleries are absolutely free for the public to enjoy. We then proceeded to gather around Jennifer as she began to explain what her job was all about. Jennifer said that she was very risky when it came to her work. Most commercial gallery owners would display what the public wanted to see, but she would put on display work that she connected with. As a result, there is a chance that she may not have as many customers as opposed to other galleries. However, she only wanted to display what represented herself, and that worked well for her. As we continued to listen to her speak about her gallery and her job maintaining it, she really began to inspire me. I, myself, had little idea that our City was so full of people that truly had a passion for art. I had no idea that, in fact, I'm surrounded by those people. Within a few more minutes, she wrapped up her speech and we thanked her for her time. We lingered around for a bit longer, before making our leave.

Our second destination was less than a 10 minute walk away. We arrived at the public art piece, the 'Equestrian Monument'. For those who have never seen the work of David Robinson, I really suggest check this one out. Stephanie, our fellow pupil of this program, explained to us all angles of this piece. The work was of man and beast, and how they wander the imagination. As Stephanie continued to further explain to us what the artwork represented, we each began to have our own little interpretation. The man tied to the horse, in fact was looking into the horizon, whereas the horse was looking down and was in labour. Catherine pointed out, and we all soon noticed as well, that the horse had no eyes. We also noticed that the hoofs of the horse and the feet of the man was significantly larger not in proportion to the rest of the body. We also noticed that there was lack of hair and mane on both the man and horse, which made us think further why David Robinson had created it that way. When Stephanie said that the work was only temporary, I was a little upset. I thought that the work should stay because it had so much interpretation and meaning that it would be a shame to take it down. But I knew that there would be a chance that something new and maybe better will replace it, and we can only respect that.

As we finished our discussion of the horse and man, we continued down a little bit more and had a short conversation a piece of public art part of the Vancouver Biennale. It was an artwork suspended above, inside the sky train station. The artwork was a picture of a man on a lighted board looking off into the distance. On the board written in big yellow lettering says, "John Sola is not making art". However, the description box plastered on the wall says otherwise, stating that "John Sola is making art". Our connection with this piece and the last was that both men in the pieces were looking off into the distance, and both made small statements about politics.

Within the next few minutes, we concluded our conversation and moved on to the Yaletown Roundhouse. Most of us were experiencing our first time being inside the Roundhouse community centre. It was quite the experience for us. The people of the community centre were extremely generous and had allowed us to use of their meeting/board rooms for our own meeting. A couple of us set up chairs while the rest of the people made quick visits to the bathroom. Catherine then proceeded to bring out the snacks. Needless to say, we were very happy. Usually, having snacks while sitting down and having nice conversation about art would be the most relaxing part of the day. As we sat down in a circle, Laurie began to talk about her work. As a freelance radio broadcaster, she is on the Simon Fraser University radio show quite often. Laurie shared with us her stories of how she came to find her passion in radio. She also explained to us that she loved to hear other people's stories as well, whether it be happy or sad. And with the career of being a radio broadcaster, she gets that chance.

At the end of the day, we were all very content and our very minds were overflowing with new ideas and interpretations. Catherine had once said that we may find it difficult to remember and learn new context, but truth is, we all love it.

Cheers,
Justina F. Lee - The Discovery kid