Two Vancouver artists are joining forces to shine a light on folks for their contributions to the community and culture of East Vancouver.

The new exhibition by David Vegt and M W Bowen, titled Habitual, features twenty paintings of key figures in the Eastside community, accompanied by biographical information for a bit of context. As the artists explain: “We wanted to celebrate the lives of a small but impactful group of individuals that we felt were adding to the culture of East Vancouver. By carefully painting each of these people in their element, we hope to draw attention to their own efforts in their respective crafts.”

Subjects include (but are not limited to):

Natasha Jung, Editor in Chief / Founder / Executive Producer of Cold Tea Collective
Dr. Christy Sutherland, Medical Director for PHS Community Services Society
Christina Wong, Executive Director of Employ to Empower
Douma and Fikayo, Owners/Designers of Hogans Alley Clothing
David Robinson, Professional Sculptor
Pennylane Shen, Art Consultant
Shane Koyczan, Internationally Acclaimed Author, Poet, and Performer
Claire Lassam, Livia Bakery
Stephanie Schneider, Clothing Designer / Owner of Glasnost (portrait featured above)
Janine Breck, Artist
Paul Morstad, Artist
Chris Bentzen, Hot Art Wet City

Habitual will be mounted on the walls of the Zoë Pawlak Gallery, a Westside artist-run space, from August 25-28th, 2022. Don’t feel too weird about the (somewhat ironic) address, though – Zoë Pawlak is an Eastside hero herself, and all subjects of the portraits on display have been invited to attend. Which means there will be solid East Van vibes in the air, and an above-average chance of engaging in conversation with some pretty cool people.

Opening night reception for Habitual takes place on Thursday, August 25th from 7-10pm. There will also be an artist talk on the following Saturday (August 27th) from 1-2 pm.

Habitual
August 25th, 2022 to August 28th, 2022
Zoë Pawlak Gallery
Street level: 1675 W 2nd Ave
Opening Night: 25 August 2022, 7 – 10pm

Zoë Pawlak Gallery

1675 W 2nd Ave

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