WINTER ARTS FEstival BRINGs TOGETHER ART AND LIVE EXPERIENCES TO CONNECT COMMUNITIES AND BRIGHTEN THE CITY!
Produced by VMF (the team behind Vancouver Mural Festival), Winter Arts Festival was launched in 2021 at the height of the pandemic. As Canada’s first-ever augmented reality festival, it received critical acclaim, including the IDA Award of Excellence. The festival continues to evolve with the addition of new public art and light installations, tours, pop-up parties, and an all-ages Hub featuring art, a licensed bar and free daily live entertainment.
Winter Arts Festival seeks to light up our city and connect diverse communities through meaningful art and inclusive experiences that reflect its many stories and cultures. Creating accessible public art, events and space is integral to realizing VMF’s vision to build a society that deeply values art and culture.
ABOUT VMF
VMF is a non-profit arts organization dedicated to artistic and cultural development. We create experiences that connect people through art.
VMF was formed in 2016 with a vision to transform the way art is experienced in Vancouver. It has evolved from a grassroots summer festival into a year-round, world-class, multi-media art consultancy and production agency. VMF produces the annual Vancouver Mural Festival and Winter Arts Festival. Throughout the year, we also collaborate with clients and community groups on arts-driven projects. To date, VMF has created over 400+ murals and continues to reimagine public art and events in our city.
VMF acknowledges that the Winter Arts Festival takes place on the unceded territories of the Lək̓ʷəŋən people: Songhees and xʷsepsəm (Esquimalt) Nation; and the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ilwətaɁɬ / sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. Vancouver Mural Festival is the DBA name of Create Vancouver Society, a Registered BC Non-Profit.
KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Dates: February 16-26, 2023
Locations: Various outdoor spaces across downtown Vancouver (see Map or free VMF App - updated Feb 2023)
Cost: Free
Who’s Invited: EVERYONE is welcome! (please be kind and respectful to each other); All-ages; Dog-friendly (on-leash).
Art installations (AR and light): Located across downtown. Accessible daily throughout the festival dates (AR available any time; light installations begin at sunset)
Winter Arts Hub: Festival central live site featuring art, live entertainment, food trucks, bar and more. Free // All-ages // Open daily: Weekdays 4PM-10PM. Weekends/Holidays 2PM-10PM.
Bring your phone for photos; to use the free VMF app to find locations, and to experience the Augmented Reality art (Tips: Update to the latest version of Instagram. Charge up your phone or visit the free charging stations at the Winter Arts Hub and Bentall Centre Gallery).
Weather: Open rain, shine or snow. Dress for an outdoor experience, including comfortable walking shoes.
Getting there: Public transportation is recommended. The nearest skytrain stations are Waterfront, City Centre and Granville. Paid parking (meters and lots) are available across downtown.
FAQs: Learn more about the festival over on our FAQ page.
CURATION THEME
Taking inspiration from Vancouver at the darkest time of the year, the theme of VMF Winter Arts 2023 is Land and Light . Through bringing together art, technology, and celebration, light becomes a creative force in the city and an invitation to consider our relationship to the land—as stewards, settlers, immigrants, visitors, and guests. We are surrounded by colours that would have been inconceivable only a few hundred years ago: in the street lights, signage, screens, and projections. In the hands of artists, light becomes a medium to illuminate, transform, and share their individual and collective visions for a shared future.
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE
VMF works year-round to produce arts-driven projects and experiences through our three divisions.
VANCOUVER MURAL FESTIVAL
Vancouver Mural Festival is one of Canada’s premiere public arts festivals and continues to reimagine public art and events in our city.
VMF AGENCY
VMF Agency brings proven expertise creating transformative arts-driven projects and experiences. We provide full art consultation and production services for private and public art projects