We value your support and generosity. Your support helps us care for our collection and fund exhibitions, learning programs and environmental research.
We’ve already received many submissions to the COVID-19 Collecting for Our Time project since we launched it on April 21, 2020.
The submissions have come from all over the province, and represent and depict many different heartfelt experiences of life lived through the pandemic in BC.
The images featured here struck a chord with us.
Do you feel compelled to send some of your own? Please see the project page for more details, including how you can send us your own thoughts, a link to a tweet, a photo or a poem.
Our plan is to post more submissions to this gallery as we move forward in the project.
Thank you very much for your interest and participation – and stay safe.
Image courtesy of Jocelyn Much, a Reading Recovery Teacher who works with vulnerable grade 1 children. This photo, by her husband, depicts Jocelyn “teaching online while taking care of our four year old daughter during the pandemic.” Image courtesy of Jasse Aujla, a teacher. This photo is of Jasse, her EA and her kindergarten student, “the only student to show up for school in June!” Image courtesy of Tina McDougald, an educational assistant. Tina took this photo of one little boy in her care getting his first look “at how things had changed since we’d all left to go on spring break on Friday, March 13th.” Image courtesy of Jessica Bettenson, who submitted a series of images “showing our town Campbell River during the stay home order on April 1, 2020. Empty streets and encouraging signs.” Image courtesy of Sigrid Albert. Sigrid is a member of a group called the Vancouver Urban Sketchers, and has submitted many sketches. This one “is about distancing from my parents (91 and 89 years old).” Image courtesy of Michael Harrison. Michael, who works as a bus driver in Victoria, remembers “how weird it felt that first week of full lockdown to be driving a bus through the empty city at rush hour and to turn around and be met with nothing but empty seats.”
Image courtesy of Alison Sharpe and her son Charlie Sharpe. This photo features a page of Charlie’s COVID-19 story, identifying items and behaviours that have become familiar to him during the pandemic. Image courtesy of Christopher Weeks. This photo, “Granville Street Entertainment District” is from a photo-essay of Christopher’s called “Ghost Town - Images of the Vancouver Pandemic”. Image courtesy of Kathleen Fisher. This photo captures Deanna Bell, who operates a food truck in Kamloops, and with the help of sponsors, feeds truckers free homemade meals. Image courtesy of Freddie Albrighton and Patrick James Butler. This image captures a haircut in isolation; Freddie notes this is one of the “perks of being in quarantine with a hairdresser”. Image courtesy of Jason Cole. Jason notes a copy of one of the photos he submitted, “Royal Columbian Hospital at 7pm”, now hangs in an establishment in Coquitlam where it’s "received tons of signatures from the community and even the mayor came out to sign it." Image courtesy of Lisa Maas. Since the pandemic began, Lisa has been creating a drawing/painting a day. She feels that “doing this gives structure to my day and helps me stay grounded, and it is the one way I feel I can serve the people in my life by sharing art and hopeful messages.” Image courtesy of Nancy Barberie. Nancy’s daughter is physically challenged and lives in an assisted living home, which was closed to visitors because of the pandemic. Nancy notes that she and other family members regularly visit through the living room window. She says, “Each time we go there are new messages on the window, of hope, of love and of gratitude for each other.” Image courtesy of Sara Bronson. This image captures a moment from Sara’s own wedding, during the pandemic. Sara says, “I don’t 100% recommend having a wedding during a pandemic, but I have to say it’s gonna be one heck of a story to tell and looking back now I wouldn’t change a thing. It made our special day so unique. And at the end of the day the show must go on. Love always wins.”
