Thank You!

Thank you for visiting the City Diorama, and particularly to those of you who have been reading the blog faithfully since it started in August 2007.

Keeping track of events at museums and related attractions in Metro Vancouver is a very time-consuming process for one person, and due to other commitments I have decided to retire the City Diorama.

The Georgia Straight Arts listings (click on the museums tab) will keep you up to date on some of the happenings around the region, and I hope that the museum community will eventually come up with its own way of publicizing the many wonderful exhibits, programs and other work going on around Metro Vancouver.

Again, thank you for reading and for your ongoing interest in our museums!

Don’t forget that museum memberships make wonderful gifts for the holidays, birthdays, and other special occasions.

What’s On: Nov. 15-21, 2008

• VanDusen Botanical Garden welcomes families with children ages 4-11 to participate in the VanDusen Mystery Trail on Saturday, November 15th from 10:30am-12:30pm or from 1:30-3:30pm. The Garden will have an I-Spy Trail around the garden that will have participants galloping across the Great Lawn, wandering through the Giant Redwoods, and hiding near the holly. The fee for this activity is $15 for families, which includes garden admission. Pre-registration is required, and you can register by calling 604-713-5898 or emailing familyprograms@vandusen.org.

• Visit the Vancouver Art Gallery on Sunday, November 16th between 12-5pm for SuperSunday, a special day recurring monthly that allows families to learn about art together through various hands-on art-based activities. Children ages 12 and under receive complimentary admission to the Vancouver Art Gallery when accompanied by a paid adult.

• The Vancouver Police Museum presents a Making Tracks program on Sunday, November 16th from 1-2pm at the Lynn Canyon Ecology Centre. Participants will learn how detectives use tracks and how to track forest animals. This program is free and suitable for children ages 5 and up. Pre-registration is required; please call 604-990-3755.

• The Jewish Genealogical Institute of BC continues its Trace Your Jewish Ancestry: Getting Started in Jewish Genealogy workshops at the Jewish Museum & Archives of British Columbia. The third workshop in the series takes place Sunday, November 16th from 1-3pm. The theme of this workshop is “Surfing the Net,” and will cover online genealogical resources, including JewishGen.org, yadvashem.org, ellisisland.org, ancestry.com, findmypast.com, newspaper searches (e.g. Jewish Chronicle), and census and passenger list searches. Click here to learn more about the other workshops in the series. The fee for each workshop is $15 per person. Contact the Jewish Museum & Archives of BC at 604-638-7288 to register.

• Master LEGO® brick builders from the Vancouver LEGO® Club return to the Surrey Museum this year with a LEGO® Winter Wonderland display, which begins Tuesday, November 18th and runs to December 19th.

• The Vancouver Art Gallery invites visitors to attend a talk by Judith Penner about AIDS and the power of grandmothers on Tuesday, November 18th at 7pm. Penner’s topic ties in to the VAG’s WACK! Art and the Feminist Revolution exhibit because it sheds light on the lived contemporary feminist experience. This event is included with gallery admission.

• Fort Langley National Historic Site celebrates Douglas Day on Wednesday, November 19th. On this date in 1858, Governor James Douglas read a proclamation in the Big House declaring the territory a British Colony. Enjoy the BC150 theatre presentation, tours, family activities, and more between 10am-8:30pm. Admission to the historic site is free all day on Douglas Day. A special BC150 concert begins at 4:30pm featuring Kwantlen First Nations Drummers, the Langley Ukulele Ensemble, Métis Fiddlers and Jiggers, The Higgins and Jessie Farrell.

• Sneja Gunew, Professor of English and Women’s Studies at the University of British Columbia, will be giving a talk at the Vancouver Art Gallery on Thursday, November 20th at 7pm in connection with the WACK! exhibit. Gunew’s talk, “Translating the Personal: The Two Traceys (Emin and Moffatt),” will address the work of British artist Tracey Emin and Australian artist Tracey Moffatt. Click here for more information.