Spirit Bears in the City - Project Overview

Spirit Bears in the City - Project Overview - Whistler

What is Spirit Bears In The City?

Found only in British Columbia's northern forests, the rare "Spirit Bear" or "Kermode Bear" is widely recognized for its unique white colouring. A First Nation legend states that the Raven, their creator, made these bears white as a reminder of the time when the world was pure and clean and covered with snowdrifts and ice blue glaciers. Raven promised that these bears would live in peace and harmony forever.

This reclusive bear will congregate on city streets in May 2006 in support of the BC Lions Society's Easter Seal Operations. The project has already taken roots throughout BC with the eight communities committed to joining "The Spirit Bear Trail" – Vancouver, Surrey, Vancouver Island, Prince George, Terrace, Kitimat, Prince Rupert, and Whistler.

Here's how it works...

Local artists, in partnership with sponsoring individuals or organizations, will create a unique design and apply it to the surface of a life size (approx. 7ft) custom formed fiberglass Spirit Bear. The Bear becomes the artist's canvas. Once the work is complete, the Spirit Bear will be displayed in prominent public spaces around the participating cities. A 'Spirit Bear Trail Guide' will be created and distributed throughout participating communities.

'Spirit Bears In The City' is modeled after other successful community art projects, such as Chicago's 'Cows on Parade', Toronto's 'Moose in the City' and most recently Vancouver and Victoria's 'Orcas In The City'.

Chicago's
'Cows on Parade'

Toronto's
'Moose in the City'

Vancouver's
'Orcas in the City'

Victoria's
'Orcas in the City'

The goals of 'Spirit Bears In The City' are very simple:

To create an event that provides maximum exposure to sponsoring organizations, artists and recipient charities
To invite tourists from around the world to visit our province and share in our culture
To produce an event that encourages the 'Arts', local businesses and individuals to come together in a spirit of community fundraising, benefiting the important work of the BC Lions Society's Easter Seal Operations
To generate artistic creativity and showcase BC artists
To celebrate the cultural diversity of our province and promote civic pride
To capture the imagination of children, adults, and tourists alike

The Spirit Bear was chosen to embody the West Coast and to highlight that the Pacific Coast of British Columbia is the only place in the world to view the Spirit Bear. The Spirit Bear exhibit will be on display from May through to October 2006.

To introduce the exhibit we will be holding exciting kick-off events in 2005 and 2006 in participating cities, where the finished Spirit Bears will be presented to the media, the public, invited guests and public officials.

The exhibit will end with the great 'Spirit Bear Auction', a gala event where the Spirit Bears will be put on the block and auctioned to the highest bidder. Spirit Bear auction proceeds will benefit the BC Lions Society's Easter Seal Operations.