Vancouver is a city bursting at the seams with arts and culture, its artists often drawing inspiration from the breathtaking scenery that surrounds them, and its culinary experts utilizing the city’s waterfront location and access to fresh ingredients. This guide will point you to some of Vancouver’s most talented artists and culinary experts.
Vancouver Artists
Carolyn Wong is a Toronto born, Vancouver based artist, whose main focus is drawing and painting depictions that tell a narrative and incorporate the natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest landscape that surrounds her. Prior to her move to Vancouver, Wong had felt a draw to her artwork, and decided to alter the course of her teaching career in order to pursue a full-time future in art. She is now thriving in the digital painting space, with her artwork shifting as she becomes further inspired by the ample nature around her.
Russell Wang, better known as RSLW, is a Taiwanese-Canadian contemporary artist and designer, currently based in Vancouver, Canada. Wang works predominantly with oil and acrylic paint, aiming to render anomalous depictions of traditional or popular characters and symbols. Wang’s interest in fine arts was first piqued at only 5 years old, and has since blossomed into portraiture work that provokes common composition and incorporates influences from both Japanese Otaku and classic American pop culture.
Alex Sangha is a Montreal based documentary film producer who recently released his debut feature film, Emergence: Out of the Shadows, which was accepted at an Academy Award qualifying festival in Atlanta. In addition to filmmaking, Sangha runs a registered charity and has an established counselling practice focusing on mental health. His experiences as an openly gay man within Punjabi Sikh culture have had a large impact on his creative and charitable ventures, ultimately leading him to found Sher Vancouver in 2008 which aims to help people in similar situations, as well as produce My Name Was January in 2012, which went on to win 15 international awards.
Vancouver Food
Peake is a catering company Vancouver based, catering corporate, intimate and extravagant events since 1991, placing a strong emphasis on sustainability and repairing our damaged environment. To combat issues on unsustainability, they purchase their ingredients and supplies meticulously, focusing on recycling and composting, and stay informed about new innovations aiming to decrease their ‘food print’.
Chef Nico Schuermans opened Chambar restaurant, a sophisticated French eatery, in 2004. Prior to this, Schuermans had an impressive career in the restaurant scene, having worked as Chef de Partie at Comme Chez Soi, a 3 star Michelin establishment often referred to as Belgium’s finest restaurant. Chambar restaurant is unique in its aim to offer guests the opportunity to experience fine food in a relaxed environment, which they’ve achieved with the help of Nico’s expertise of Belgian beer culture, and his handpicked selections of Belgian imports which can be paired with any item on the menu.
Josh Gale is a Vancouver based chef, having worked at a wide array of Vancouver restaurants, such as Nicli’s Next Door, Wildebeest, Juniper and Nicli Antica. From these diverse experiences, Gale has developed his background in food and flavours, as well as his passion for elevating traditional comfort foods, which he brings to his role as chef at Tap & Barrel Group. Here he reinvents familiar flavours and experiments with modern techniques and ingredients.