The Culture Chats B.C. Association is marking Multiculturalism Day with an intercultural community arts festival in Burnaby.
The festival is on Wednesday, June 27 from 4 to 7 p.m. at Burnaby Neighbourhood House’s south location, 4460 Beresford St.
The event includes a community art exhibition, children’s activities and multicultural performances.
“We are curating this festival as a free platform for community artists, including newcomers, to showcase their talents and build upon their artistic skills,” said Asmita Lawrence of Culture Chats B.C. in a press release. “Attendees will have a chance to engage with amazingly diverse world art.”
Among the handicrafts and artwork on display will be painting on glass, hand-woven Persian scarves, East Indian jewelry, Egyptian hand painting on papyrus, African fabrics and traditional First Nations crafts.
Group performances will be presented by community members, including Chinese dance, line dance and more. Children can enjoy activities such as word games, paper craft, intercultural story time and henna painting.
The event has been planned with partners and sponsors including Burnaby Neighbourhood House, the Burnaby Intercultural Planning Table and Festivals Burnaby, with part funding by the Government of Canada.
“We are excited to support this community-based initiative seeking to nurture creativity and excellence in different forms,” said Kimberly Barwich, program director at Burnaby Neighbourhood House. “It fits with our mandate to provide the structure and framework and then let community members take the driving seat.”
Everyone is welcome to the event. It’s free, and you don’t need to sign up – just drop in. Light refreshments will be available.
Culture Chats B.C. is a not-for-profit association that promotes intercultural connections through engagement with literary and other arts. Find out more about them at www.culturechats.org.
