Stanley Park — Vancouver's Urban Playground
Stanley Park, a 404.9-hectare urban park was officially opened on September 27, 1887. Bordering on downtown Vancouver, Canada’s first official green space is the largest city-leased park in Canada. Attracting more than eight million visitors a year the history of the park appeals to an array of individuals as it includes First Nations burial sites, pioneer villages, and logging and military fortifications. Specifically, two unique sculptural arrangements are located within Stanley Park’s boundaries. The first is a unique collection of eight Totem poles that share the history and longevity of British Columbia’s first people. The second is a brass sculpture, named Girl in Wetsuit which not only captures the character of British Colombians in the 1970’s but also underscores Canada’s unique relationship with the sea. Such examples highlight why Stanley Park, named for Lord Stanley of Preston Governor General of Canada in 1888, has maintained a unique status as Canada’s largest and most loved, urban park.
On June 8, 1887, Privy Council Clerk, John J. McGee, received notice that His Excellency, The Governor General, had no objections to the City of Vancouver’s proposal to use the Dominion Government Military Reserve as a public park. This news came after months of negotiation and discussion in an attempt to gain control of the former military reserve. Representing the province of British Columbia, the mayor of Vancouver, desired to see this land become an urban haven; a place for all British Colombians to come and enjoy. The park would be leased by the city of Vancouver conditional upon the city’s ability to maintain the parks natural integrity and agreement to release the land back to the Privy Council at any time.
Just over one year after the official opening of the park, on October 29, 1889, at the ancient Indian clearing of Chay-thoos, Lord Stanley threw his arms to the heavens and dedicated the land in the presence of the onlookers. He committed the park, “To the use and enjoyment of people of all colours, creeds and customs for all time.”
By 1913, the Park had become an important tourist destination, drawing some 50,000 visitors on foot per week. Considering that at this time the park was still free of automobile use, the number of visitors becomes even more impressive. The Park’s famous ‘seawall’ began construction in 1918 and was eventually completed in 1980. Today, the seawall is an 8.8 km trail that circumnavigates the perimeter of the park from Coal Harbour to the West Side. The seawall leads visitors through the impressive urban jungle with views that include sandy beaches, sculptures, and stunning gardens that reflect the unique geography of British Columbia.
Since its opening in 1887, several monuments and attractions have been erected in Stanley Park to honor the past and celebrate the future. Significant events, cultures, and people, cast in bronze or wood, serve as constant reminders of British Columbia’s impressive legacy. Two such monuments can be found just a few hundred meters inside the Stanley Park entrance. The first, Girl in Wetsuit is located by Lumberman’s Arch, on the north side of Stanley Park. The second, a monument comprised of eight unique Totem Poles, is situated just off of the seawall beside the Brocton Oval cricket pitch.
Girl in Wetsuit was the creation of Elek Imredy, an artist from Budapest, Hungary. Unveiled in June 1972, Girl in Wetsuit is a life-sized, female scuba diver who sits atop a large rock a few meters out into the ocean. The sculpture was the brainchild of Douglas McKenzie Brown, a lawyer and friend of Imredy, who approached him with the idea of placing a sculpture atop a large rock located on the North side of Stanley Park. This sculpture was to be similar to a mermaid sculpture found in Copenhagen - the men however were unable to attain permission to create a replica. Somewhat relieved Imredy wrote, “I was happy to hear that, I didn’t believe that we should have a copy of the mermaid [as] she is rightfully the symbol of Copenhagen.”
Instead, inspired by the evergrowing popularity of scuba diving on the West Coast, Imredy proposed to have a life-sized scuba diver seated on the rock. Beyond the scope of scuba diving, this sculpture was to be a unique representation of British Columbia and her people. Girl in Wetsuit reveals elements of history, trade, and exploration to its audience. The Girl’s eyes look out to sea, and her body leans easily towards the ocean demonstrating Vancouver’s dependence on the sea and the necessary role that it has played and continues to play in the lives of all British Columbians.
Today many identify Girl in Wetsuit as an integral component to the historical integrity of Stanley Park. However when the Park Board first accepted Imredy and McKenzie Brown’s idea, the tempers of some members in the community flared. Some citizens were not comfortable with Imredy’s new sculptural addition. However in spite of such concerns, Girl in Wetsuit was equally praised for its contribution to the artistic ambiance of Stanley Park. One reviewer commented: “Girl in Wetsuit: just off the mainstream of bustling humanity, she’s a constant amid so much flux, a guarantee amid so much uncertainty, a calm reality amid so much frantic existence. Stop and say hello and get inside her head for a moment. She’ll do you a world of good.”
Stanley Park stands out from all other parks in the world because of the history and relationships that are represented through its vast collection of art. This includes a display of eight totem poles that have become one of British Colombia’s most visited and popular tourist attractions.
Totem poles are usually carved from a carefully selected Western red cedar and are unique to the North West Coast of British Colombia and Lower Alaska. While there is a religious element involved in totemism, there is little or no religious connotation associated with individual totem poles. Instead, totem poles are sculptures, used to communicate ones’ crests, genealogy, history and tradition through carving, painting, and representative symbols.
These same messages of courage, strength, and dignity are emitted from the eight totem poles located on the crest of Brockton Point. By placing these carvings in Stanley Park, British Columbians proudly show the rest of Canada the relationship they have with First Nations people and their commitment to preserving this aspect of the province’s past. The sculptures come from all over British Columbia - places such as Alert Bay region on Vancouver Island, the Rivers Inlet, and the Queen Charlotte Islands. Due to unfavorable West Coast weather conditions, all of Stanley Park’s original totem poles now sit safely preserved in museums. Between 1986 and 1992 the Park Board worked diligently to replace the first sculptures, battered by nature and time.
On August 26, 1936, the Thunderbird House Pole, carved by Chief Matthias Capilano, was erected on the crest of Prospect Point in Stanley Park, after Professor Charles Hill-Tout presented it to the City of Vancouver. The gift reflected a promise made by First Nations and the British in 1792 to defend Burrard Inlet from invasion. Currently seven other totem poles stand alongside the Thunderbird House Pole in Stanley Park demonstrating the need to remember the events and peoples who were responsible for protecting and shaping Canada. However these poles no longer sit at the original site of Prospect Point as in the early 1960’s they were moved to the place where stand today, just east of the Brockton Oval. The Oscar Maltipi Pole, the Beaver Crest Pole, the Chief Wakas Pole, the Sky Chief Pole, the Kaka’solas Pole, Ga’akstalas Pole, and the Chief Skedans Pole are the other seven poles that silently proclaim the history of British Colombia’s First Nations to all of Stanley Parks’ visitors. These “talking poles” archive the histories and legends of an earlier Canada.
When Stanley Park was first opened in 1887, in his speech, Mayor Oppenheimer proudly proclaimed to all who were present, “I deliver Stanley Park to the care and guardianship of the Park Committee here present and … realize our present hopes to have the most beautiful park in the world.” Today, Oppenheimer’s statement is no less true. Stanley Park is undeniably Canada’s most beautiful and, considering its urban context, best preserved park. Millions of visitors have explored the forest oasis that boasts hundreds of years of history through its sculptures and art. Such visitors will undoubtedly gain a greater knowledge that Stanley Park’s natural beauty is only part of what makes it priceless. Stanley Park is the only park of its kind and relays valuable stories about its city, its province, and its country.
Contributed by Rebecca Stanley
— 2009 Practicum Student with The History Group Inc.
