Ah, summer — a time when our city comes alive with things to see and do, and longer days during which to see and do them.
We understand the need to relieve your pent-up travel urges, but have you ever done the typical vacation activities — golfing, beach lounging, museum touring — in and around your own city? Read on for ways to experience what the Edmonton area has to offer in terms of arts, culture and relaxation in the city, and even places that make you go, “Damn, we have that here?”
Some of them are out of this world.
We all wish for balmy summer days, but c’mon, we live in Edmonton; we’re bound to have at least one week where it pours non-stop. What to do on those wet, rainy days? Visit an art gallery. The Ociciwan Contemporary Art Centre showcases the work of contemporary Indigenous artists. The best part? It’s located in the Quarters, the part of downtown that actually has easy-to-find street parking.
Seize the gloomy day and head inside the one-room gallery to explore the feature exhibit: Aninnik (anirniq), meaning breath of life. The solo exhibit by Inuit artist Glenn Gear uses animation, projection, photographs and drawings to celebrate the sights and sounds of land, sea and Animalia of Nunatsiavut. And maybe by the time you exit, the clouds will have parted and the sun will be gleaming off the shiny exterior of the building. – Katrina Turchin
The Ociciwan Contemporary Art Centre Address: 10124 96 Street NW Edmonton
Water-Wise, River Breath, the Art Gallery of Alberta’s new exhibit, compares conversations on
the Amazon River and the North Saskatchewan River, with a sense of juxtaposition that connects to bigger questions: Who’s protecting the water? How do we interpret the right to water, if there is any? And are we hearing all the voices in this discourse?
“The exhibition covers a huge topic, so we spent some time coming up with the right questions. We wanted to efficiently guide the visitors into thinking within the watershed, and that requires a precise use of space,” says Amery Calvelli, adjunct curator of the Poole Centre of Design at the Art Gallery of Alberta.
Calvelli has been in conversation with architects Wanda Dalla Costa and Ana María Durán Calisto over the past year.
“The youth voices are not heard as often as they should be. We get to see a generational relationship with water in Costa’s artwork, and we hope it opens the conversation for younger generations.”
Water-Wise, River Breath: Reframing design’s role with water is currently on exhibition at the Art Gallery of Alberta. – Sophia Yang
Art Gallery of Alberta Address: 2 Sir Winston Churchill Square
This article appears in the June 2022 issue of Edify
