June 1 – 30, 2024 | Queer Arts Festival

The Ties That Bind examines the bonds and complexities of Family, be it blood or chosen, and how Queer communities continue to survive and thrive alongside, within, and occasionally despite, traditional family constructs. From collectives to choirs, from drag houses to dance troupes, from our community art show to the many partnerships we enjoy year after year, QAF 2024 examines the many ways in which “family” manifests itself in Queer and Queer-arts communities.

Full Festival Schedule

Varied Editions

Jun 1 - 30 | Wed-Sun, 12-5pm | Malaspina Printmakers, Granville Island | Free Exhibition Opening: June 1, 6 - 10pm register Taking its title from the printmaking technique where an artist alters individual prints within a greater edition to create a series of similar, but uniquely distinct artworks, “Varied Editions” brings together a collection of Queer printmakers showcasing the ever-evolving diversity and queerness of the printmaking community. Curated by Cheryl...

Queer Eyes, Queer Lives:

A photo exhibit of 2SLGBTQIA+ youths’ substance use, homelessness, and resiliencies Jun 10 - 29 | Tues - Sat 12pm – 6pm | SUM gallery | Free REgister This must-see exhibition showcases photography from over 60 2SLGBTQIA+ youth who participated in UBC research studies on drug use. These young artists, aged 14 – 29, have created a body of work that largely centres around identity, substance use, housing, and mental health –...

ArtParty!

Jun 14 | 7pm – 10pm | Gala Opening Reception | Roundhouse Exhibition Hall | Pay-What-You-Wish | ASL by request register Nothing says “We Are Family” like our annual ArtParty! We kick off our presence at the Roundhouse Community Centre with art, conviviality, and a celebration of our 17th Queer Arts Festival! This evening also sees the launch of our visual art exhibition, CRAWL SPACE, by the 10-member animation collective Flavourcel. Fabulous...

CRAWL SPACE

Flavourcel Animation Collective: QAF 2024 Artists in Residence Jun 14 – 25 | 9am – 9pm M-F, 9am – 5pm Sat & Sun | Curated Visual Art Exhibition | Roundhouse Exhibition Hall | Free QAF invites the Flavourcel animation collective out of the basement and into the CRAWL SPACE as both curators and exhibiting artists of the festival’s signature Curated Visual Art Exhibition at the Roundhouse Exhibition Hall. CRAWL SPACE reflects on...

Stealth Codes

Transgender Augmented Reality and Poems of Presence Jun 14 - 25 | Augmented Reality | Roundhouse Community Centre | Free STEALTH CODES is an exhibition featuring the works of Angelic Goldsky and queer community artists, crafted in collaborative workshop sessions merging poetry with augmented reality (AR). This exhibition explores digital transgender truth-telling, that is hidden in plain sight, while confronting the absence of queer transgender life affirmation online. Through the...

In Our Gaybourhood

Premieres online Jun 14 | Podcast | Free Welcome, neighbour, to our gaybourhood. Listen to Episode One of In Our Gaybourhood QAF's first-ever podcast, In Our Gaybourhood is a journey through the communities of BC, meeting our neighbours who work towards a world where everyone can be proud of who they are. In its first season, we get to know some of the 2SLGBTQIA+ advocates, educators, and students who help...

Ayibobo III:

Little Dollhouse on the Prairie Jun 15 & 16 | 7pm | Roundhouse Performance Hall | Pay-What-You-Wish REGISTER Brought to you by Elle Barbara, avant-garde creator and Mother of Montreal’s Idiosyncratic House of Barbara, Ayibobo III: Little Dollhouse on the Prairie is a work of high-octane performance art, merging dance with experimental soundscapes. Drawing audiences into a kinetic and spiritual vortex of pop culture and Haitian Voodoo, Ayibobo III explores...

QAF Community Art Show

Jun 17 – 29 | Tues - Sat | 12 - 6pm | The James Black Gallery | Free Please note this venue is stair access only. Established way back in 1998, the then-named Pride in Art Community Show was the event that started it all. Over the years the name and location have changed, but the spirit remains the same: showcasing and celebrating the outstanding artists and artwork from...

Trace Elements:

QAF Film Night Jun 18 | 7pm | Roundhouse Performance Hall | Pay-What-You-Wish register Join the QAF in the return of our beloved movie night with Trace Elements , a stirring program of short films curated by Kathleen Mullen highlighting queer filmmakers who consider the highs and lows of familial bonds. Familial ties in all their glory and angst are explored through these films that dive deep into what brings...

On Cuddling:

A Reading with Phanuel Antwi Jun 20 | 6pm | Artist Talk | W Projects | Free register Photo: Max Haiven Join us at W Projects (555 Hamilton St.) for a public reading of On Cuddling: Loved to Death in the Racial Embrace with critically acclaimed artist and curator Phanuel Antwi. Ranging from the terrifying embrace of the slave ship’s hold to the racist encoding of “cuddly toys,” On Cuddling...

Presenting a Trio of Events that Centre Queer Excellence in Music

QAF + Vancouver International Jazz Festival Moor Mother Jun 21 | 7pm | Music | Fortune Sound Club | Ticketed* Get tickets Photo: Piper Ferguson How do you engage the stunning, evocative, haunting gift that is Moor Mother’s latest album The Great Bailout? Only by following the trail of potent verbal and sonic poetry. Only by letting Moor Mother be your guide. Released March 8, The Great Bailout is...

Curators Tour

Jun 23 | 1pm | Visual Art Tour | Roundhouse Exhibition Hall | Free | ASL by request register Join members of Flavourcel as they give a guided tour of the CRAWL SPACE installation, providing artistic insights and a behind-the-screens glimpse on the nature of working jointly as an experimental animation collective. ASL can be booked for this event. Please email ben@queerartsfestival.com to arrange. Flavourcel consists of 10 artists and animators...

QAF Clothing Swap

Jun 23 | 2pm | Community Event | Roundhouse Community Centre, Room C | Free Do you have under-utilized clothes and accessories? Are you on the hunt for some free, fab looks? Get those old clothes out of the closet and down to the Roundhouse on June 23 for our first ever QAF Clothing Swap! We're looking for clothes that are clean, gently worn, and unscented. Clothes can be dropped...

Glitter is Forever

Jun 25 | 7pm | Closing Reception | Roundhouse Exhibition Hall | Free | ASL by request REGISTER Our familial festivities officially come to a close with friends, music, art — and local drag royalty The Darlings ! Take a final stroll through Flavourcel's CRAWL SPACE, thrill to music courtesy of DJ Ziggy Zaya , and experience an experimental drag troupe that CBC praises as "pushing the boundaries" and "turning...

Submissions are NOW OPEN for the 2025 QAF Community Art Show!

Submission Checklist:

June 1 – 30, 2024 | Queer Arts Festival

Full Festival Schedule