Educator Workshops October 22
Climate change. Plastics in the ocean. Habitat destruction. Ocean health. These are all important topics that teachers want to cover in the classroom. But how do you build a teaching plan around these issues that engages students without overwhelming them? Fun hands-on activities are a great way to get kids interested. So are activities that let them get creative.
The Japanese art form of gyotaku checks off all these boxes. In Japanese, “gyo” translates to “fish” and “taku” means “stone rubbing.” Gyotaku is the art of making prints using real fish.
And on October 22, the VMM is hosting workshops for educators where you can learn gyotaku and explore ocean issues.
In this two-hour workshop, you will get to make gyotaku prints with the guidance of artist Paula Nishikawara. The step-by-step lesson will be followed by a discussion about ocean plastics, climate change and the threats affecting the world’s oceans.
The ticket cost includes all supplies for making gyotaku prints– including the fish. You will be using real fish, rockfish in fact.
You get to keep your gyotaku prints. The ticket also includes museum admission. Be sure to leave time before or after your workshop to explore the Canoe Cultures :: Ho’-ku-melh exhibition and the other permanent exhibitions.
Paula Nishikawara
Paula Nishikawara is the artist behind our feature exhibition, If I Lived in the Ocean. Her gyotaku work has travelled throughout the U.S., Canada and Australia as part of a Smithsonian Institute Exhibition and she has shown work in the USA, Germany, Nigeria and Canada. She’s a graduate of the Emily Carr College of Art and Design in Vancouver, BC. and has had studios in Berlin, Germany and Lagos, Nigeria.
The workshop times are 10:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Tickets are $30. There are limited spaces available, so book now to secure your spot.
All participants must provide proof of vaccination upon entry to the museum. Masks are mandatory.
These workshops will take place on the unceded core traditional territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) nations.