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YVR – Gateway to Vancouver

January 17, 2010 by Judy 6 Comments

YVR – Gateway to Vancouver

Flying dirty on approach to YVR
…….

Vancouver International Airport, YVR, Canada’s second busiest airport, is located in the suburb of Richmond, B.C. When I took a tour there I learned a lot of unique things about the building itself … like how it conserves energy: sidewalks and escalators slow down when they’re not in use. Colours and textures calm crowds and minimize noise. Aquariums are strategically placed to calm as well as entertain. Circular seating areas with flat screen TVs are designed in such a way that when you sit inside the circles you can hear the TVs, outside, you can’t. Each YVR gate has a specially designed counter and foot hold where laptop owners gather to work while waiting for their flights.

Spirit of Haida Gwaii at YVR: The Jade Canoe by Bill Reid Photo by: Reinhard Kraasch

Spirit of Haida Gwaii: The Jade Canoe by Bill Reid Photo by: Reinhard Kraasch
. . . . . . .

A painting of BC forest, mountains and sea by Canadian Group of Seven artist, Lawren Harris, was selected as the colour palette for YVR’s interior. Huge glass curtain walls give travelers spectacular views of the ocean and the mountains. Wood, a British Columbia resource, is widely used throughout. What really impressed me about YVR though, is its outstanding collection of Northwest Coast native art. According to the airport’s art foundation, it’s what drove the vision for the new YVR terminal. Anchoring the collection is Bill Reid‘s The Spirit of Haida Gwaii: The Jade Canoe. Canadians know it from the back of the Canadian $20 bill. I also loved walking through Pacific Passage, an entry point for US travelers. My passage view was dominated by a giant Thunderbird sculpted by Connie Watts.  But it really doesn’t matter what vantage point you enter YVR from, beautiful native art greets you at all points.

In times of troubled international flight, I think YVR is a facility that attempts to lift our spirits to a higher plane. That makes it a welcoming gateway for those headed to Canada’s west coast.

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Filed Under: Canadian Places Tagged With: 2010 Winter Games, 2010 Winter Olympics, airport, art, art collection, Bill Reid, Canada, Canadians, gateway, Group of Seven, Haida, Lawren Harris, Northwest Coast art, The Spirit of Haida Gwaii: The Jade Canoe, Travel Media Association of Canada, travelers, Vancouver 2010, Vancouver International Airport, YVR, YVR Art Foundation

Trackbacks

  1. Twitter Trackbacks for YVR – Gateway to Vancouver 2010 [roadstories.ca] on Topsy.com says:
    January 18, 2010 at 6:11 pm

    […] YVR – Gateway to Vancouver 2010 roadstories.ca/yvr-%E2%80%93-gateway-to-vancouver-2010 – view page – cached Ask most Canadians what they know of YVR, Vancouver’s international airport, and they’ll likely talk about an ugly incident involving four Mounties, four tasers, and a confused and angry Polish traveler. The Polish traveler died. […]

    Reply
  2. The Richmond Olympic Oval says:
    January 24, 2010 at 3:18 pm

    […] It is located a few kilometres south of Vancouver on Canada’s west coast, minutes from Vancouver International Airport (YVR) which is across the river on Sea Island. Although built specifically for the Games, the […]

    Reply
  3. uberVU - social comments says:
    January 29, 2010 at 3:33 am

    Social comments and analytics for this post…

    This post was mentioned on Twitter by boomergirl50: Have you flown into Canada’s Olympic city? The new YVR: https://roadstories.ca/yvr-gateway-to-vancouver-2010/ #TT…

    Reply
  4. Steveston Historic Fishing Village says:
    February 1, 2010 at 7:08 pm

    […] Here’s a map. Richmond is accessible from Vancouver on the new SkyTrain, so is the airport (YVR), and the Olympic Oval, but not Steveston. North arm of the Fraser River from Lulu Island […]

    Reply
  5. Bill Reid and his Canoe - Canadian Roadstories says:
    March 29, 2017 at 11:21 am

    […] two of these, one in black is at the Canadian embassy in Washington, DC; a jade-green one is at the Vancouver International Airport, and is the most visited aboriginal art piece in North […]

    Reply
  6. Steveston Historic Fishing Village - Canadian Roadstories says:
    February 8, 2018 at 5:11 pm

    […] fishing village in the southwest corner of Lulu Island, British Columbia. It’s not far from the Vancouver International Airport and the city of […]

    Reply

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