Storytelling—its scope and ongoing significance—lies at the heart of Stories that animate us, a dynamic and compelling exhibition developed formally and thematically in conversation with Sun Xun’s Mythological Time. Highlighting a rich selection of works on paper and animations, Stories that animate us draws from a diverse range of oral histories, narratives, knowledge systems and cosmologies.

 Whether evoking the spirit world, delving into the depths of their imagination or endeavouring to make meaning from historical and current events, the featured artists reflect on such existential themes as culture, community, memory, morality and identity in order to speak to the past, present and future. Stories that animate us invites the public to reflect on the importance of storytelling in their lives while asking: What stories inspire you, what stories need to be told and which will you pass on?

 Featured artists include Robert Davidson, Francisco de Goya, Jérôme Havre, David Hockney, Cindy Mochizuki, Ed Pien, Osvaldo Ramirez Castillo, Marina Roy, Royal Art Lodge, Cauleen Smith, Amanda Strong, Camille Turner, Howie Tsui and Joyce Wieland.

Organized by the Vancouver Art Gallery and curated by Zoë Chan, Assistant Curator and Diana Freundl, Interim Chief Curator/Associate Director

Ruins is a series of mixed media drawings that describes an ongoing process of reconciliation with tragedy, by recounting individual experience and revising collective memory witihin the legacy and impact of the Salvadoran Civil war.  

In these recent works, historical trauma and catastrophe are mediated by reconfiguring notions of re-growth, renewal and healing through personal myth making.  Working from a variety of  historical, cultural and political references, hybrid imagery is merged by revising Pre-hispanic storytelling, cosmology, Salvadoran popular folkore and iconography sourced from Western art history.

Please visit Empty Gallery:

A major international exhibition at La Halle Saint Pierre Museum coming up very soon featuring 36 international artists.

list of artists:

Vasilis Avramidis (Greece), Gil Batle (USA), Jürg Benninger (Swiss), Nils Bertho (France, Troy Brooks (Canada), Chen M (Belgium), Mayrose Crook (New-Zealand), Mikaël De Poissy (France), Fulvio Di Piazza (Italy), Claire Fanjul (France), Alessandro Gallo (Italy), Sérevine Gambier (France), Davor Gromilovic (Serbia) Filip Hodas (Czech Rebublic), Nancy Josephson (USA), Kris Kuksi (USA), Brigitte Lajoinie (France), Mathieu Lewin (France), Lizz Lopez (USA), mad meg (France), Gerard Mas (Spain), Masayoshi Hanawa (Japan), Mothmeister (Belgium), Heather O’Shaugnessy (USA), Agathe Pitié (France), Osvaldo Ramirez Castillo (El Salvador, Canada), David Rochline (France), Shelter Shirrstone (Russia), Heidi Taillefer (Canada), The Kid (Netherlands, Brasil), Paul toupet (France), Yannick Unfricht (France), Henriette Valium (Canada), Nathalie Verdon (Swiss), Quan Wansanit Deslouis (Thailand), Betsy Youngquist & R. Scott Long (USA).