A celebration of Canadian culture and arts, BC Culture Days happens in September at various locations in Metro Vancouver and around the province.
Despite COVID-19, BC Culture Days is still scheduled for 2020! In fact, unlike previous years, it’s scheduled to run for a full month, with both in-person and online activities.
(* For photo credits of the above images, see bottom of this article.)
DRIVE-IN MOVIES IN MAPLE RIDGE
Among other BC Culture Days activities happening in various places this year, Maple Ridge is hosting a series of drive-in-style movies from late September until mid-October. For details see our article about Vancouver Drive-In Movies.
British Columbia Culture Days in 2020
In 2020, the coronavirus pandemic has resulted in many festivals and events in the Lower Mainland and around the world being either postponed or cancelled altogether. Fortunately, BC Culture Days is still set to begin on September 25th and run until October 25th. This is significantly longer than usual, as regular Culture Days events are typically only one weekend long.
Culture Days is a national festival that celebrates Canadian arts and culture. This year’s theme is “Unexpected Intersections”, which focuses on unusual pairings and mashups.
There are five cultural ambassadors for this year’s festival in British Columbia. They include Coral Santana (an Afro-Latina writer) and Edward Fu-Chen Juan (a print-making artist), both from Vancouver. The other ambassadors are Damian John (from Ymir in the Kootenays), Molly Beatrice (from Victoria) and Bambi (from Revelstoke).
Topics covered during the festival include minority experiences, First Nations history, environmental conservation, and more. The five ambassadors are introduced during the festival’s opening virtual event, which is hosted by the City of North Vancouver at 4 pm on September 24th.
For more information regarding this year’s series of events, continue reading below or visit the BC Culture Days website.
When and Where?
In normal years, BC Culture Days usually takes place on the last weekend of September. However, the festival is scheduled to run for one whole month in 2020, from September 25th until October 25th. Due to COVID-19, events vary in format. Some are in-person, while others are available via live streams, digital downloads, and even self-guided tours.
One free in-person event that is scheduled for 2020 is Edward Fu-Chen Juan’s Plant Ink Extraction Demo. It occurs on September 25th, from 1 pm to 3 pm at Stanley Park’s Lost Lagoon, just outside of the Stanley Park Nature House.
Another free in-person event is the Fun Group Dance Workshop, organized by Pooneh Alizadeh. It runs every Saturday during the 2020 festival, from 4 pm to 5 pm, at 2136 Eastern Avenue in North Vancouver.
Many in-person events have limited capacities and advanced registration may be required. Some events are a fair size, and others are tiny.
To see more in-person and virtual events that are scheduled for this year’s festival, click BC Culture Days Events.
Other Information
To learn more about the festival, visit the Culture Days website.
* Images in the top collage or photos are of Cedar Hill Recreation Centre at BC Culture Days by Kevin Light, Ital Blue by Kristen Lawson, and the Lorita Leung Dance Company by Mary Matheson.
Additional articles that may be of interest include:
- Vancouver’s September Calendar
- Vancouver’s October Calendar
- Lower Mainland Festivals and Events
- Vancouver Shows and Entertainment
- Vancouver on a Budget
- What’s Open in COVID-19 Vancouver
