Vines Art Festival announces 2025 lineup, ranging from outdoor storytelling to an exhibition opening

Free events will take place in seven Vancouver parks from August 6 to 16

VINES ART FESTIVAL is rooted in art-led land justice; and as such, it’s only fitting that the 11th annual festival will take place at seven different parks around Vancouver.

Taking place from August 6 to 16, the just-announced program includes plenty of outdoor storytelling, dance, and music performances, along with an art exhibition at the multi-use Vines Den space on East Hastings, near Hawks Avenue.

The festival will launch at Second Beach on August 6 with an opening ceremony called Receiving Direction, presented in partnership with Chaythoose. The folks leading this celebration of the land and its caretakers include Gitxsan-Cree multidisciplinary artist Raven Grenier; poet Hari Alluri, who is of Filipinx and South Asian descent; El Salvador–born DJ Raul Espinoza; and Musqueam-Irish artist May Point-Shaw, whose alt-pop music project is called stelliumPoint.

On August 7 at Pandora Park, Times Reflection will offer an evening full of music, dance, and poetry with artists Babette Santos, Ricardo, and the Ghostly Hounds. The gathering is designed to honour cycles of creation. And at Dude Chilling Park on August 8, Kinfolk Nation, Black Pace, and Kin Balam will acknowledge the power of the sun with a night of unapologetically lively beats, melodies, and stories.

One of the festival events—the opening of Palestinian-born, Montreal-based multidisciplinary artist Rehab Nazzal’s exhibition Driving in Palestine—will take place indoors at Vines Den on August 9. It’s composed of photographs that Nazzal took from car windows in her homeland from 2010 to 2020. Together, they display the effect of the Israeli occupation there: the environment is shown cluttered with walls, watchtowers, gates, and fences.

Photograph from Rehab Nazzal’s Driving in Palestine.

After a few days’ pause, programming will resume on August 13 at Oppenheimer Park with Hands of Hope, featuring musician Gabi Tomé, multidisciplinary artist DANI YOUR DARLING, and flamenco dancer Kasandra Lea. Food, song, and movement will be shared during the gathering, in honour of the Downtown Eastside community’s resilience.

Supernatural Gifts at Sunset Beach Park on August 14 will involve drag, storytelling, and music by Ahsia, Maiden China, and Acacia Bukuru. The next day, at Grandview Park, Rooted Relations will uplift the voices of people from all generations who are reclaiming sovereignty with gratitude to their ancestors. Artists Hayley Wallis, Takaiya Blaney, and Nova Wolf will perform.

The festival will conclude on August 16 at Trout Lake Park with Elemental Nourishment, a tribute to the sustenance provided by the land, water, fire, and air. Expect songs, dances, and poems by Sam Chimes, Siobhan Barker, and Ashley Chodat.

Admission to Vines Art Festival is completely free and no tickets are required. All performances start at 6 pm, except the closing event, which begins at 1:30 pm.

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Emily Lyth

Emily Lyth is a Vancouver-based writer and editor who graduated from Langara College’s Journalism program. Her decade of dance training and passion for all things food-related are the foundation of her love for telling arts, culture, and community stories.

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