Indigenous art with "welcome" messages added to SeaBus terminals

Indigenous art at the SeaBus terminal at Lonsdale Quay. (TransLink)

TransLink has installed new Indigenous art murals on prominent overhead spaces at the SeaBus terminals of both Waterfront Station and Lonsdale Quay.

This includes a banner directly above the entrance gangway at the Lonsdale Quay terminal, with text in hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ on the left that means “Welcome to our lands and waters,” and text in Squamish on the right that means “Welcome.”

At Waterfront Station, there is also art and signage above the “SkyWalk” doors and along the windows near the SeaBus terminal escalators.

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The installations use the same artwork and templates from the Indigenous art that wraps the exterior of the new SeaBus vessel Burrard Chinook, which went into service in July 2021.

SeaBus Waterfront Station Indigenous art

Indigenous art at the SeaBus terminal at Waterfront Station. (TransLink)

The artwork is created by local artists Kelly Cannell, Siobhan Joseph, and Angela George, who represent the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh nations, respectively.

The name of the vessel and art were selected and designed as a tribute to the Chinook salmon, one of the most iconic species in Pacific waters. The exterior art design illustrates the lifecycle of the Chinook salmon, as well as the historical importance of this species of fish to BC’s ecosystem.

The new SeaBus Burrard Chinook vessel during its maiden voyage on July 22, 2021. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

Expansion of SkyTrain’s Surrey Central Station, with a suspended Indigenous art sculpture. (TransLink)

TransLink has incorporated public art elsewhere on the system, including other Indigenous installations.

For instance, the 2019-completed renovation and expansion of SkyTrain Surrey Central Station included a suspended First Nations wooden sculpture by Marianne Nicolson within the new two-storey ticketing concourse.

For the SkyTrain Millennium Line’s Broadway Extension, the provincial government has selected four groups of artists to design general public art for four of the six new subway stations. In addition to the general public art, all six stations will also have separate Indigenous art designed by artists representing the three local First Nations.

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