Dear Friends of the Vancouver Biennale,

We need your help.  The Vancouver Biennale needs letters of public support for their donation of a sculpture by Quebec sculptor, Michel Goulet, to the City of Vancouver.

The Parks Board is meeting on Monday and they need letters of support by then!

The work is called Echoes.  It was a part of the previous Vancouver Biennale and would become a permanent addition to the city’s public art collection.  It is a series of 16 chairs inscribed with phrases in French and English and alludes to cultural/language difficulties in communication.

Please rally your art-loving friends and other supporters of public art and ask them to send letters to Jil Weaving.  She is the Arts and Culture Coordinator for the Parks Board.  She is very supportive and needs letters showing public support for art in public spaces to assist the Park Board in their decision.

I have attached images below as well as a sample letter – the one that I sent, please use it as guidance but don’t copy it verbatim.

We hope that you can find the time to forward a positive letter to Jil Weaving at jil.weaving [at] vancouver.ca – it will go a long way toward showing how Vancouver supports art and artists from all across Canada.

Thanks everyone.  Have an excellent weekend!

SAMPLE LETTER

Dear Ms. Weaving:

I would like to add my strong support favouring the installation of Michel Goulet’s ECHOES sculpture at Kits Beach.  I personally enjoy this piece very much:  I love how it entices citizens and tourists of all demographics to step in more closely to read the text and to actually sit down on the chairs.  This is public art that is engaging, accessible, and highly creative.

Furthermore, what an opportunity for Vancouver to seize this work (by such a celebrated Canadian artist) to include in the city’s permanent public art program!  We cannot pass up this opportunity!  Let’s step up to the plate and wholeheartedly accept this truly awesome donation.

It is to the great credit of the Vancouver Biennale that we have world-class art literally at our fingertips.  I want to make sure our city does indeed resemble other cosmopolitan centres with terrific public art.  We need more donations such at this one:  citizens and tourists alike are the beneficiaries.

Yours sincerely,

Local Arts Fanatic