A spectacular overview of one of the most highly acclaimed art collections on the West Coast, which greets travellers at YVR as they journey between land, sea, and sky. Vancouver International Airport, known for its modern design and expansive topography, offers an impressive visual display of award-winning art and architecture. Each terminal building represents the culture heritage, natural beauty, and iconic experiences that embody British Columbia, and the artwork exhibited throughout plays an integral role in telling those stories. Revered in particular for its focus on Pacific Coast Native art, the collection is presented in the thematic groupings of land, sea, and sky - three realms that intersect at YVR.

In YVR, art historian and critic Robin Laurence will examine the commissioning of dozens of striking artworks as a response to the airport's overall architectural and design plan, and particularly as a reflection of the cultural heritage and natural environment identified with the province of British Columbia. Among the highlights of the collection are monumental sculptures by leading Northwest Coast First Nations artists including Susan A. Point (Coast Salish), Robert Davidson (Haida), Dempsey Bob (Tahltan-Tlingit), Richard Hunt (Kwakwaka-wakw), Lyle Wilson (Haisla), Joe David (Nuu-chah-nulth), Connie Watts (Nuu-chah-nulth, Kwakwaka-wakw and Gitxsan), and the late Bill Reid, famed for The Spirit of Haida Gwaii: The Jade Canoe. Their art both welcomes and bids farewell to the millions of travellers who make their way through YVR each year.

Robin Laurence is an award-winning freelance writer, critic and curator based in Vancouver. She has a B.F.A. in studio arts and an M.A. in art history, and was educated at the University of Calgary, the University of Victoria, the Banff School of Fine Arts and the Instituto Allende in Mexico. She has written dozens of essays for local and regional galleries, and her articles on art have appeared in many magazines. Laurence was also visual arts critic for the Georgia Strait and the Vancouver Sun.

Robin Laurence's profile page