Public Art
You will find public art in many places in our community: in galleries, on beaches, on street corners and in public buildings. Art is part of our community’s identity.
With over 100 pieces in our Public Art Inventory, browse this page to view some highlights from the collection.
Above: Emerging Power by Ian Rowles
Call to Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) artists
The District invites graphic design artists from the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) to create contemporary Sḵwx̱wú7mesh art, which will be featured on street banners in local parks, business districts, and along the Centennial Seawalk and Spirit Trail.
One artist or a team of artists will be selected to develop a creative design that reflects cultural aspects of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw.
Bold and simple designs are encouraged, so the art is visible on street banners.
Submission deadline: Monday, January 10, 2022, at 2 p.m.
AquaScapes
The south wall of the Aquatic Centre is actually an award-winning installation of moveable sunshades.
Beach Tangle
Beach Tangle is a 12- by 20-foot sculpture of driftwood pieces and objects combed from West Vancouver's beaches and shores.
Big Chairs
Infrastructure or art? Located at the foot of 18th Street on the beach by the Seawalk, the Big Chairs might tempt you to sit and read.
Chimney Mural
The Music Box hosts arts programs, concerts and workshops and is a piece of art itself. The chimney mural pays homage to its artistic location by depicting a variety of art forms, painted on the cinder blocks that go from the ground up to and through the building’s roof.
Community Faces
West Vancouver was a venue city for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, and the West Vancouver Community Centre hosted joyous community celebrations up to and during the Games. Community Faces features portraits of those who took part.
Eye of the Mountain Bear
Walking through Ambleside, you’ve probably passed this fountain with a sculpture carved from a 12-tonne jade boulder from the Cry Lake Jade Mine, near Kutch Creek in northern BC.
German Friendship Globe
Precisely engraved with the continents of the world, the globe floats on a thin cushion of pressurized water in a granite basin. The Friendship Globe was donated by members of the German Community of Greater Vancouver, led by Harald Lincke, a long-time West Vancouver resident.
Granite Assemblage
Ambleside Landing is home to this artificial tide pool created by fifty granite cubes and rectangles set at the edge of the harbour. The effect of the extended landscape at the waterfront draws visitors into this work of environmental art.
Harmony
Harmony is a beautiful stained glass window created in honour of Lieutenant in Command Gordon Stone, who died during active service in 1918 in WWI.
Kwakiutl Bear Pole
In front of the ferry terminal building in Horseshoe Bay you’ll find this Haida-style totem pole carved from Western red cedar.
Lucky: Mona’s Harbour Seal
This bronze sculpture of an appealing, friendly harbour seal encourages users of the Aquatic Centre to rub it for luck. Originally from Stinson Beach, California, the sculpture was donated by Jim Brickley.
Small Worlds
Meet Baby, our latest public art piece that will be accompanied by a larger version—affectionately called his Mama—outside the West Vancouver Community Centre this summer.
Spirit House Post: Gathering of Nations
Located on the Great Lawn on the Community Centre grounds facing Marine Drive, the Spirit House Post is often the centre of community celebrations. The four faces represent water, land, sky and the Eagle deity.
Spirit of the Mountain
This signature sculpture is another West Vancouver landmark, greeting visitors at the entrance to Ambleside Park.
Squamish Nation Welcome Figure
The Welcome Figure is a West Vancouver landmark in Ambleside Park, visible from Lions Gate Bridge, Stanley Park and the waterfront of West Vancouver.