‘Perception and Integrity’ at Phibbs Exchange

Jordan Gallie · Phibbs Exchange Bus Loop · North Vancouver, BC

səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) · Medium: Aluminum · Installed: October 2021

An eagle looks down. A wolf walks the earth. A Tsleil-Waututh artist placed both of them at a North Shore bus loop — on the traditional unceded territory of his Nation — and called it exactly what it is.

The Work

Most people passing through Phibbs Exchange are thinking about their connection. Jordan Gallie made a work for them anyway.

Perception and Integrity is a large aluminum installation on the southeast corner of North Vancouver's Phibbs Exchange transit hub — one of the busiest bus connections on the North Shore. It features two figures from the Coast Salish world: an eagle, representing the ancestors of the Tsleil-Waututh people looking down from the sky as guides, and a wolf, symbolizing the Tsleil-Waututh people who walk the earth now. The piece has a cut-out quality with a copper colour finish — earthy, warm, rooted in the land it stands on.

Gallie is a proud member of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, born and raised in North Vancouver. His inspiration to create art began at nine years old, when he first saw First Nations artwork displayed at the Museum of Anthropology in Vancouver. That encounter set a direction he has followed ever since — through the Native Education College, through jewelry and printmaking, through commissions with the City of Vancouver, Fraser Health, TransLink, and the Bill Reid Gallery.

Perception and Integrity is one of 14 Indigenous artworks displayed throughout TransLink's system across the Lower Mainland. It was selected through a call for artists coordinated by the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, and Gallie's design was realized in collaboration with Knight Signs.

The title holds the two things Gallie wants people to take away. Perception — to look at this place and understand whose territory it is, and what history it carries. Integrity — to meet that understanding with honesty, regardless of who you are or where you come from.

"No matter where you are, who you are, what walk of life you are, we're all equal. We're here for a purpose, whichever that may be." — Jordan Gallie, səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh)

Know Before You Go

Located on the southeast corner of Phibbs Exchange, North Vancouver. Viewable from the bus loop and surrounding street — no entry required. Accessible year-round at any time.

Phibbs Exchange is an active transit hub — buses arrive and depart frequently. The work is best viewed from the sidewalk on the southeast corner, away from active bus bays.

Best time to visit: The copper finish catches the light best in morning and late afternoon. Quietest outside peak commute hours.

Getting There

By Transit — SeaBus from Waterfront Station to Lonsdale Quay, then any eastbound North Shore bus to Phibbs Exchange — a major transfer point for most North Shore routes. Approximately 25 minutes from downtown Vancouver.

By Vehicle — Cross the Second Narrows Bridge (Highway 1) and follow signs toward Dollarton Highway. Phibbs Exchange is at the intersection of Main Street and Dollarton Highway. Street parking on surrounding streets.

From the VCC: SeaBus from Waterfront Station — 12 minutes to Lonsdale Quay, then any eastbound bus. Approximately 25 minutes total.

From YVR: Canada Line to Waterfront Station, then SeaBus, then bus to Phibbs Exchange. Approximately 45 minutes.

CONTINUE THE TRAIL

→  Integrity & Legacy · Olivia George · Maplewood Fire and Rescue Centre · 0.2 km

→  Wild Bird Trust of BC · Ocean Hyland & Jordan Gallie · Maplewood Flats · 1.5 km

→  Syewá:l (Ancestors) House Post · Zachary George (Skokaylem) · Corrigan Nature House · 1.5 km