Vancouver - Seattle Tour: Day Three

To the Vancouver Art Gallery, a short walk from the hotel, where they have a reciprocal agreement with the ROM so I just show my membership card for free admission saving $15. The first exhibit I view is simply called Paint." The exhibition’s focus is a generation of British Columbia artists who have demonstrated an energetic commitment to exploring the possibilities of paint. Selections from the permanent collection of the Vancouver Art Gallery and several regional museums contribute to an overview of the defining achievements of B.C. painters in preceding decades."
On another floor in the magnificent restored former courthouse they are installing a photo exhibit based on the life work of Fred Herzog and I get a sneak preview. "Born in Germany, Fred Herzog came to Vancouver in 1953. Since that time he has produced a substantial body of photographs, taking urban life in Vancouver second-hand shops, vacant lots, neon signage and the crowds of people who have populated the city’s streets over the past fifty years as his primary subject. Herzog has self-consciously drawn upon documentary traditions in photography, while incorporating an outsider’s idiosyncratic sensitivity to a new environment into his images." Unfortunately it officially opens on Jan 25 and I'll be back in Toronto by then.
Next to see the work of B.C. Binning, which I enjoy the most, and to view a filmed interview where he talks about the Vancouver art scene from back in the 1920s and about his work

"B.C. Binning will present approximately 50 works by Bertram Charles Binning, one of Canada's foremost artists, architectural innovators, art educators and seminal figure in the arts in British Columbia. Drawn from the Vancouver Art Gallery's collection, this exhibition presents key examples of Binning's drawings and paintings and reflects his enduring interest in architecture through the inclusion of maquettes for large mural projects Binning undertook for public buildings in the Greater Vancouver area."


We grab a McDonald's lunch near Canada Place and save $3.20 by using a coupon. To the IMAX Theatre where we watch Deep Sea 3D narrated by Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet. It is visually stunning and reminds us of our visit to the Aquarium the day before. I can't help myself so I reach out to try and touch the moon jellies and other creatures as they float by. "A new and enthralling undersea experience from the makers of Into the Deep, will offer audiences astonishing up-close encounters with some of the most strange and exotic creatures on the planet, from the bizarre rainbow nudibranch to the giant Pacific octopus. " We save $2 on admission with coupons.
We take the sky train to the Pacific Central train station to buy our Amtrak tickets for Seattle tomorrow.
Back downtown we do some browsing through shopping malls and opt for a Subway dinner - of course we have coupons and save $6.29 on our meal. Today's savings $26.49. Total Savings $99.99 (I kid you not!)