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PARTIAL RECALL: Week of March 18, 2021

Do these chairs look familiar? Once upon a time, they brought skiers and snowboarders to the top of Catskinner on Blackcomb, before being retired.

Do these chairs look familiar?

Once upon a time, they brought skiers and snowboarders to the top of Catskinner on Blackcomb, before being retired. Now, they’re finding new life as works of art, as part of Arts Whistler’s new LIFTing the Community initiative, made possible by support from Vail Resort’s Epic Promise fund, in partnership with Tourism Whistler and the Whistler Blackcomb Foundation. Up until this week, the project has been “secretly” underway at the Whistler Conference Centre, where 15 local artists teamed up with local organizations to transform the chairs into stunning pieces of art that reflect the theme of belonging. According to Arts Whistler, the story behind each reimagined chair will be shared online via video each week, beginning in May through August. All completed chairs will also be on display throughout the summer in Whistler Village, “for people to explore, experience and discover their own spirit of belonging,” says Arts Whistler. At the end of the summer, each chair will be auctioned off, with all funds going to each respective community organization to help support their programs that foster a sense of community belonging and wellbeing. Among the sneak peeks of chairs shown here is work from Whistler Museum and Archives. AWARE (Alyssa Bruijns), Arts Whistler (Anna Lynch), the Whistler Community Foundation (Stan Matwychuk), WCSS Kids on the Move (Laura Scarr), Alphabet Soup/Whistler Youth Centre, Audain Art Museum (Ace Mackay-Smith and Mercedes Nicoll) and the Mature Action Community (Tonnja Kopp). Can you guess who each chair belongs to?