Curated Guide
Public Art in the EAD
We appreciate community input and understand that not all historical and current locations are fully represented in this guide. We’re working to expand the information and welcome your feedback and contributions!
East Vancouver is a vibrant and dynamic area, brimming with creativity and cultural significance. Public art plays a central role in shaping its identity, transforming streets, parks, and public spaces and inviting exploration and conversation.
From towering murals that reflect the community’s stories to intimate pieces that surprise and delight in unexpected places, East Vancouver’s public art is as diverse as the people who live here. These works not only beautify the city but also act as a powerful medium for storytelling, addressing themes of history, resilience, and social change.
This guide will take you through the Eastside Arts District, highlighting monumental works, hidden gems, and the unique artists and histories behind them. Whether you’re a long-time resident or a first-time visitor, this is your invitation to experience the creativity and passion that define East Vancouver’s public art.
Iconic East Vancouver Landmarks
Surrounding the Eastside Arts District are some of the most monumental public art pieces in Vancouver.
Photo credit: East Van Cross by Beaulawrence is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.
Monument for East Vancouver by Ken Lum
2173 Clark Dr, Vancouver, BC V5T 1E6
Perhaps the most recognizable landmark of Vancouver’s Eastside, The East Van Cross traditionally was the work of graffiti artists, said to express the “marginality and defiance” of East Vancouver.
Starting in the 21st century, the symbol has been adopted as a city icon, most visibly expressed in the form of Monument for East Vancouver by artist Ken Lum, erected in 2010 near the intersection of Clark Drive and East 6th Avenue
Photo Credit: Robert-Keziere
Abbott & Cordova, 7 August 1971 By Stan Douglas
111 W Hastings St, Vancouver, BC V6B 0G9
Abbott and Cordova, 7 August 1971 embodies Stan Douglas’s career-long investigation of the history of Vancouver. Douglas chose to commemorate the 1971 Gastown riot, during which a peaceful “smoke-in” against the city’s use of undercover agents and in favour of the legalization of marijuana erupted into a conflict with the police, fuelled by anger over the neighbourhood’s gentrification.
The photograph is the product of exacting historical reconstruction involving an elaborate life-size stage set, lighting, and paid actors.
Dreamweaver
31 W Pender St, Vancouver, BC V6B 1R3
Crowning the roof of Skwachàys Lodge is a longhouse with a laser-etched stainless steel panel and a 40-foot totem pole.
Photo Credit: Maxime Cyr-Morton
Murals
The walls of the Eastside Arts District’s buildings tell many stories. Murals have a long history in Vancouver, yet due to their impermanent nature, many have come and gone.
This art form has grown significantly in the years since the foundation of the Vancouver Mural Festival in 2016.
Photo credit: Exhausting Machine by Nevercrew, via Vancouver Mural Festival
River of Crows by Artist Richard Tetrault
Vancouver Area
A two-block long mural on a tiered retaining wall, the final work gives animation and a colourful presence to a previously drab, grey concrete wall. Community involvement is evident in the overall spirit of the mural.
River of Crows was initiated from the community, and reflects in rhythmic sequences, the daily migration of urban crows from night to sunrise and into daylight.
Photo credit: Esther Rausenberg
Listening. On. Waking Terrain. By Artist Bracken Hanuse Corlett
220 Terminal Ave, Vancouver, BC V6A 2W8
Underneath Main and Terminal and extending back towards present-day Clark Drive existed a biologically rich lagoon and marsh area that was used by the Tsleil-Waututh, Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations since time immemorial. The area was covered over to make room for Industry and the CPR railway.
The attempted erasure of the space by the colonial forces of the time was thorough, and it continues to be built upon today. When looking at some of the public art in Vancouver and other cities we often see a romantic depiction of industrial beginnings and labour. What existed before is often covered and ignored. Knowing that my work will live in this space temporarily, I feel it is important to acknowledge its history as well as its present day. Vancouver is built upon unceded land, sacred sites, complex river and stream systems, hunting, and cultivated gathering grounds. It is easy to get lost in the feeling of permanence that urban structures hold. The areas we walk, drive and live upon have place-names and a history of lived experiences.
Photo credit: Rachel Topham
Radius Mural By Artists: Richard Tetrault, Jerry Whitehead, Eri Ishii, June Yun
280 E Cordova St. Vancouver BC V6A 1L3
This mural is one of the City’s Year of Reconciliation Projects, and is based on the cultural links and connectivity of Aboriginal, Chinese and Japanese cultures. The convergence of these groups is portrayed in a woven design with symbols, narratives and text from each culture.
The mural was conceived with input from each of the three communities, and incorporated into the final design. The mural includes many unifying elements including a large wave suggesting constancy, adaptability, humans’ relationship to nature and connectivity to roots and language. Artists Eri Ishii, Richard Tetrault, Jerry Whitehead and June Yun worked with mentored youth from each cultural group on the painting of the mural.
Photo credit: Esther Rausenberg
Land Back Mural by Various Artists
99 W Pender St, Vancouver, BC V6B 1R3
Located at 83 West Pender St. in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, the Land Back mural is a community crowdfunded project featuring the work of more than 35 graffiti writers.
Photo credit: Ted McGrath, 2024 – Vancouver – DTES On Message CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Entranceway by Richard Tetrault
415 Alexander St, Vancouver, BC V6A 4G6
“Entranceway” was painted for this social housing development with input from the residents. The design reflects ” strength in community in an area of Vancouver that is confronted with fragmentation, displacement and change.”
Photo credit: Esther Rausenberg
Pestilence by Derek Edenshaw
291 E 2nd Ave, Vancouver, BC V5T 1B8
Created in memory of the artist’s mother and in honour of her dedication to making East Vancouver a better place. Derek Edenshaw is an established Indigenous multimedia artist who started steeped in Graffiti culture. As a graffiti writer, he goes by MANIK 1NDERFUL.
Photo credit: Vancouver Mural Festival
Historical Reminders
The Eastside Arts District encompasses some of Vancouver’s most historically rich neighbourhoods, including Chinatown, Railtown, Powell Street, and Strathcona.
Many public artworks speak to these histories and difficult past events.
Oppenheimer Memorial Totem Pole by Master Carver
400 Powell St, Vancouver, BC V6A 1G6
The totem was carved using traditional techniques taught by a master carver. The pole was created in memory of “lives that otherwise may have gone unrecorded.” – The Art of Neighbourhoods, Park Board Brochure
Photo credit: Kris Voveris
Marker of Change by Beth Alber
Vancouver Area
The monument consists of a 100′ diameter circle of 14 pink granite benches, each 5.5′ long, with a slight bowl at the top. Each bench is inscribed with the name of one of the 14 women killed by a gunman on December 6th, 1989, at the l’Ecole Polytechnique, University of Montreal.
The benches are about the length and width of a woman’s body, and the depression in the center of each bench catches rainwater, a reference to tears. A 98′ diameter circle outside the benches is set with 500 7½” square tiles with the names of donors. The circle is situated close to the center of the park and makes reference to ancient stone circles. The space inside the circle is slightly domed and covered with grass. An altar-like podium stands just outside the circles and bears the name of the piece and an inscription.
Over time, Marker of Change has quietly asserted itself into the consciousness of the community and has become a site for individual reflection and meditation as well as a place of discovery.
Photo credit: City of Vancouver, 2023
Chinatown Memorial Monument
135-137 Keefer St, Vancouver, BC V6A 1X3
The statues of an 1880s railway worker and a World War II soldier were erected to commemorate the contributions made by Chinese Canadians to Vancouver and Canada. The main column refers to a Chinese character for “the centre.”
Photo credit: Romary (Goëry on Flickr), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Remember Hogan's Alley by Ejiwa "Edge" Ebenebe
258 Union St, Vancouver, BC V6A 3A1
In partnership with Hogan’s Alley Society, BC Housing and the PHS Society, this artwork was commissioned through the City’s Hogan Alley Artist Call 2019. In February 2019, the City invited proposals for a temporary painted mural or digitally printed artwork to be located in Hogan’s Alley.
Photo credit: City of Vancouver
Subtle Interventions
Not all public art is monumental. Many public art pieces in Vancouver hide in plain sight, rewarding those who stop to experience them and adding colour, whim, and meaning to the urban fabric.
A New Light in Town By Artist: Alex Morrison
281 Industrial Ave, Vancouver, BC V6A 2P3
This artwork was produced for Every Letter in the Alphabet, a year-long project by Geoffrey Farmer.
Photo credit: City of Vancouver
All My Favourite People Are Animals By Artist: Emma Stocking
730 E Hastings St, Vancouver, BC V6A 1R5
All my favorite people are Animals is a sliding door panel made of cast bronze that sits in front of a one‐way mirror. The small area between the mirror and the door is lit during library opening hours.
The artwork responds to the architectural and cultural context of the VPLʼs new nəә́ca̓ ʔmat ct Strathcona Branch Library. It aims to highlight a sense of community despite visible economic and cultural diversity of the neighbourhood.
Photo credit: Blaine Campbell
Saltwater City Vancouver By Artist Paul Wong
475 Main St, Vancouver, BC V6A 2T7
A neon artwork by Paul Wong honouring the history of Cantonese migrants illuminates 475 Main Street.
The piece is designed to promote discussion around the significance of, and challenges to, the Chinese language, culture, and preservation of heritage assets in the neighbourhood.
The neon artwork displays the Chinese characters 鹹水埠温哥华, which translates to “Saltwater City Vancouver.” It commemorates the award-winning Canadian artist and curator’s early memories of the neighbourhood.
Speaking about the piece, Paul Wong said, “I grew up in Chinatown when it was ablaze in bright neon and big colourful signs and at a time when the Chinese community commonly called Vancouver ‘Saltwater City.”
Photo credit: City of Vancouver
A Long Conversation (for Oona) By Artist Peter Gazendam
438 Terminal Ave, Vancouver, BC V6A 3W9
Peter Gazendam’s A Long Conversation (For Oona) (2017) is a series of 40 bronze sculptures of the species ariolimax columbianus, commonly called banana slugs, installed in and around Columbia College’s Terminal Avenue campus.
Photo credit: Blaine Campbell
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Other Resources
Explore other Public Art resources in our city:
- Vancouver Public Art Registry – vancouver.ca/publicartregistry
- Vancouver Mural Festival – vanmuralfest.ca
- Indigenous Public Art – indigenouspublicart.com
- Street Art Cities – Vancouver – streetartcities.com