IMAGINATION STATiONS
Learn more about a variety of different art forms with our FREE drop-in Imagination Stations!
Children ages from 3+ and their families are welcome to participate.
Printmaking Lab with Yaimel López Zaldívar
Immerse yourself in the art of printmaking with Yaimel López Zaldívar. Using traditional techniques and water-based inks on a printmaking press, you'll have the opportunity to create your own single-edition image. Discover the magic of this hands-on process as you bring your artistic vision to life.
Yaimel is a Cuban artist based in Vancouver, Canada, where he works as an artist, graphic designer and educator. With more than ten years experiences his work has been exhibited in the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Cuba as part of collective and individual exhibits. He has also collaborated with several cultural organizations and his work appears in different magazines and books.
This station is brought to you by the Richmond Art Gallery.
Magical Creature Paper Pin-Prick Lantern with Secret Lantern Society
Craft your very own paper lantern featuring your favorite mystical creature! Join the Secret Lantern Society in this enchanting imagination station and bring a touch of magic to your creation.
Since 1994 the Secret Lantern Society has celebrated art, culture, beauty, community, the cycles of Nature, and light through our annual Winter Solstice Lantern Festival and various community events.
Secret Lantern Society is an artist-run and community-driven organization, and our mission is: to transform spectators into participants through celebration.
Stopmotion Animation with Laura Rivera
Dive into the enchanting world of stop-motion animation with Laura Rivera. Bring your drawings and figurines to life as you learn the mesmerizing techniques of stop-motion. This hands-on workshop offers a dynamic and fun way to explore the magic of animation.
Laura Rivera was born and raised in the Sonoran desert where she started drawing as soon as she could hold a pencil. This Mexican young lady won a scholarship to study Digital Arts: Film Animation in Arizona, where she directed many short films and animated a short video. After graduation, she went on to share her knowledge as a middle school art teacher in Mexico for four years. During this period, she also taught character design and writing panels at conventions such as Phoenix Comic Con, won awards in costuming and started writing/drawing her web- comic “1126”, which ended in August 2020, among other one shot comics. Laura works as a freelance artist and writer with credits in Netflix’s “Club de Cuervos” and Channel Frederator’s “101 Facts About”.
Button making with Keely O’Brien
Join artist Keely O’Brien for a button-making adventure! Using Richmond archival images, you'll have the opportunity to create unique collage and printmaking buttons. Express yourself through this interactive and artistic process, and leave with one-of-a-kind wearable art.
Keely O'Brien is an interdisciplinary artist whose practice incorporates intricately handmade objects with innovative theatre creation. Devoted to a thoroughly DIY process, Keely’s work includes immersive installations, imaginative ephemera, and interactive experiences. As an educator and facilitator Keely creates collaborative art projects with community members and organizations. Frequently site-responsive and engaged with questions of place, home, and belonging, Keely's work aims to celebrate the potential for creativity and community in the place and people around her.
Nature's Palette: Richmond's Flora and Fauna Exploration with Bea Martin
Embark on a journey of discovery with artist and naturalist Bea Martin. Learn and explore the flora and fauna, biodiversity, of Richmond through puppetry, storytelling and art in this engaging station. Let your imagination run wild as you contribute to mural and experience the magic of combining art and nature. Continue to explore nature as a family with a treasure hunt activity with animals from the mural, distributed as cutouts placed in the nearby surroundings.
Bea Martin is character animator, certified medical illustrator, nature journal educator, and Fulbright Scholar with a medical background. Through her illustrations, murals, public artwork, and nature drawing workshops, Bea aims to connect people with nature and with themselves. In 2022 and 2023 Culture Days, she conducted nature journaling workshops in several schools in the District 38 of Education, in collaboration with Richmond Arts Coalition (RAC). Her public artwork can also be found at the the Gulf Georgia Cannery National Historic Site, and as part of the City of Richmond Traffic Cabinet Art Wraps.
Wishing Up a Dragon Scale with WenWen Cherry Lu
Encounter the friendly Chinese dragon at Wen Wen Cherry Lu's station. Decorate a dragon scale using watercolors, inks, and pastels. Write a wish or blessing to keep or offer the scale to the dragon. In return, choose one of the dragon’s scales to take home—a symbol of good luck for the year ahead!
Wen Wen (Cherry) Lu is a Chinese-Canadian multimedia artist interested in exploring the hidden, the small and the forgotten through installation, illustration, and animation. Taking inspiration from her family history, she seeks to combine it with the present experiences of culture, nature, and community to create something that questions. She is a graduate of Emily Carr University with a bachelor’s in visual arts and a visual arts instructor at Shadbolt Centre for the Arts.
Air Dry Clay Creations with Bella Kwiatowski
Step into the world of clay with Bella Kwiatowski and let your creativity soar. In this station, you'll get the chance to work with air-dry clay and craft your own 3D project. Unleash your imagination and take home a unique piece that reflects your artistic expression.
Bella has been in love with visual arts her whole life, and had the pleasure of taking ceramics more seriously in first few years of college. She loves to share the craft the same way it was shared with her. Currently, she is embarking on an education degree so as to become the best teacher she can be.
Bella’s approach to teaching is with as much patience and sensitivity as possible. Her discipline is in the arts, and believes the focus should not be just on the product or piece one makes, but the whole experience. "to practise art, no matter how well or badly is a way to make your soul grow" -Kurt Vonnegut.”
Weaving Wonders
Immerse yourself in the collaborative art of public weaving. Join fellow participants in creating a vibrant and communal woven masterpiece. Share stories, ideas, and creativity as you contribute to a unique and evolving tapestry.