I visited in November 2024, and it was my first time at the Eastside Culture Crawl. I found out…read moreabout it by chance on social media. I came on the last day a few hours before it ended, so I was only able to experience a bit of it. I went to one of the featured buildings of the event, Parker Street Studios, and went through all four floors of the building. It's a massive building that used to be a mattress factory decades ago, but now it's a hub of over 100 individual artist studios. It was crowded but not incredibly hard to move around. The Eastside Culture Crawl is an awesome event for art nerds. You get to see all kinds of art including painting (oil, watercolor, acrylic, gouache), drawing, sculpture (clay, stone, metal, wood), printmaking, photography, textile arts (weaving, embroidery, quilting, knitting), ceramics (pottery, porcelain, stoneware, earthenware), mixed media (collage, assemblage, multimedia), digital art, glass art, and jewelry (metalwork, beadwork, enameling, wire wrapping). There were at least a handful of people walking around in each of the individual studios. Some were lounging on the couches to admire the art, some were standing and talking about the pieces with their friends, and some, like me, were quickly taking a peek and walking around to see the next studio. I kind of rushed through it due to the lack of time left, but I'll definitely come back next year. What's nice is that you can meet and chat with the artists about their works and buy their works directly from them in person. Public washrooms were easy to access, which is great. As for food options, a couple of food trucks were outside with not much of a queue. There were a couple of long tables for eating food with tents over them because of the rain. As a transit user, it's easily accessible from the 22 Knight/Downtown bus, just a couple of blocks away. I highly recommend visiting the Eastside Culture Crawl, especially if you are a fan of fine arts and crafts, or just as an interesting annual social event with friends during the fall season. Best part is that admission is FREE! I don't really have any complaints about this event. 5 out of 5 stars based on this visit.

I am SO surprised that I am adding this event now, that there is no existing Yelp page for this…read moreannual, major arts and crafts festival that just celebrated its 25th year! It's a very established festival, always held late in November, focused on Vancouver's vibrant fine arts, crafts and design scene. Essentially, artists all open their studio doors to the public during this event, and so we the public can check out painters (all mediums and genres), pottery makers, glassblowers, textile artists, collage makers, sculptors, jewelry makers, woodworkers, and more. Not only can we check out the studios, but often we are able to talk to the artists themselves. There are furniture makers, photographers, weavers and printmakers. There is practically every kind of artistic endeavor represented here, on display and often for sale. There are abstract works, contemporary pieces, more traditional works, and everything in between. It is amazing! Geographically, the festival is located in the area bounded by Columbia St., 2nd Ave., Victoria Dr., and the Waterfront. This is primarily a gritty, industrial area distinguishable solely by non-distinguishable large, grey warehouses. And within each warehouse is a labyrinthine maze of offices, big and small (mostly small), converted into artists' studios. One could literally spend a whole day exploring one of these large warehouses, as they are jam-packed with studios on every level. (Note that it is super easy to get lost, too! Which is part of the experience. I was reminded of the elaborate corm mazes I've walked through in the fall, getting lost around most corners, having to backtrack often. It was part of the charm of the experience, especially when repeatedly passing by the same people who were also disoriented and lost a bit!). I've wanted to attend "the Crawl" for the past 4 years, ever since I moved here, and this year, I finally did. And I was not disappointed! I just wish I had given myself more time to explore and see more. Next year I will know to start earlier in the day. It's easy to lose track of time here, and there is SO much to see. Why I love this event: HUGE range of artists, all genres and mediums. Great event to expose oneself to the Van art scene, talk to artists, learn about crafts, get inspired. The event is FREE. Yes, FREE. Not very common in Vancouver, I know! And parking in the area is also FREE. All the artists in the studios we visited had their works for sale, so if you want to get artisan work and support local people, this is the spot! There were also studios where you could actually see the works being made and watch the artistic process (we saw som wood furniture being made and glassblowers doing their thing). There are quite a few food trucks all throughout the area, if you get hungry (man, some of them smelled amazing!). Also, we were gladdened to see that they checked everyone's COVID passports before allowing people inside each warehouse. Here's the reason I didn't give the event five stars: even though it was great that they checked all our vaccine passports prior to entry, they did not restrict the number of people inside. Some warehouses and the studios in them were SO SO packed, my friend and I were SO uncomfortable. This was particularly true of the warehouse that housed most of the glassblowers. It was wall-to-wall people and, yes, we were all wearing masks, but still, we're in a cramped and enclosed building with cramped and enclosed rooms, and some of the studios here were totally full of people when we visited. It was unnerving and we had to leave this building sooner than we would have liked. It would have been better to only allow "x" amount of people in the building at one time.

Great option for watching and/or producing programs. The James Cowan Theater seats 285 and has…read moregreat sight lines. The small Studio Theater is more intimate. This is an older building, but well-kept. The grounds are beautiful, as is the newer atrium annex.

À beautiful place to take any sort of art lessons!…read more The place has multiple theatres and studios asking with a ton of classes to choose from. All the work displayed on the walls are from students and is routinely changed so there is always something inspiring to look at! Really love this place I honestly thought that it was a much newer building than it actually is! Good design transcends time. The amount of talent that comes out of here is amazing

It's weird going to a private event upstairs but through the bathrooms. Otherwise fine. People said…read moredrink prices were reasonable.

Interesting that the upstairs hall was completly renovated a couple years ago, brought up to code,…read moreand has a vibrant loyal crowd. Might not be everyone's cup of tea. So be it. Down home, local and unpretentious.

Went there for the tequila festival it was well organized and the space was great. I thought it was…read morebetter than the Italian cultural center. Really enjoyed myself. Southbound tequila was the best tequila there!

Decent sized venue space in the middle of East Van…read more Parking is plentiful in the lot surrounding the building. The venue consists of a "large room" and a "small room", which is designed more for 2 separate events. Bit of a walk between them, which led to a bit of confusion as the event I was attending took up both rooms. Fortunately they had plenty of helpful staff to guide us around.

Bought tickets to see a specific comedian and got Bate and switched with no real explanation no…read moreoption for refund as they told us after we ordered our mandatory 2 items minimum per person. The food was disappointing probably frozen Costco stuff. The venue was like a dinghy attic and comedians were basically the joke, 1/3 was ok. Over all walked out of there feeling ripped right off. Never again

I'm so lucky to have this fantastic vintage venue within walking distance of my home. A few years…read moreago, the most recent owners took on the gigantic project of restoring this 1920s era vaudeville/movie house to its former glory, while also adding modern sound and lighting and reconfiguring the seating into a dinner theatre style. The pictures don't lie - there are big red velvet drapes, chandeliers and exotic Moorish/Morroccan touches like columns and murals. Just a damn cool theatre to see a show in, and I've now been to a few, from burlesque shows to my comedy idols like Bruce McCulloch. Upstairs in the smaller, and less lavishly appointed room, is Lafflines, which is a great spot to see up and coming comedians while having a few glasses of sorrow-drowning liquids and a basket of chicken strips. Both upstairs and downstairs have the same basic menu, so if you can deal with Sleemans and nachos, you're laughing. The wine list is OK, and for girl-drink drunks, they've got some sweet throwback martinis. The servers are really nice, but there never seem to be enough of them, so be decisive when they come around, because they might not get back around to you for a while! I've noticed that for some of the shows in the theatre, they'll have maybe two or three working the entire venue. Upstairs, one or two depending on the night (I tend to go on Thursdays for amateur night, so it's not usually very full). For all the fanciness of the decor, it's not at all posh, just a laid-back place to go see a live show. If you don't like fun, well, stay home.

Located on Granville Street, Atelier Gallery was first established in 1974. While the focus is on…read moreemerging Canadian artists, they also exhibit a diverse range of talent. They consistently show work done in a broad spectrum of media and subject matter. From the playful and whimsical to the more urban and abstract, two-dimensional work is generally given priority. Like all galleries, season after season, the nature of the gallery changes depending on what is available in the current artscape. In addition to showcasing the artwork of emerging artists, Atelier has a wide range of services to the budding collector. They offer a payment plan for those who love art but can't afford to pay $7000 in one go. In addition, private consultations are available to individuals or corporations who may wish to develop their art collection or need assistance with appraisals for tax purposes. For emerging artists, they have an ongoing submission process for those eager to find representation.

Through a friend of mine, I had a chance to join in free yoga class after work. (The instructor and…read moreme has a mutual friend) First you have to sign up the visitor registration at main entrance and check instructor's name on board. Then head to the each studio. It was small studio but very pleasant and clean. Leave the shoes at aisle and bring your belonging inside. Quiet enough to relax in downtown. I liked simple service by dance center staff too.

I love this place. Dancing with Sophie was one of the…read morehighlights of my year!

My favourite venue I've been to, always have a great time. Sound and atmosphere are great, staff is…read morenice

Awesome venue and super nice staff! Was there for Willie Nile concert. Went downstairs for a drink…read morebefore the concert friendly staff there as well.