Native Northwest owner donates Paul Windsor collection to VGH

VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation’s art collection recently added the works of Haisla Heiltsuk artist Paul Windsor to its roster, thanks to a generous donation from Larry Garfinkel, owner of Native Northwest, and his family. Garfinkel commissioned the new pieces to donate to the Foundation.

The nine pieces of acrylic on wood were inspired by Windsor’s belief in art offering a message of healing and wellbeing. VCH President and CEO Mary Ackenhusen and VCH-Vancouver Acute Chief Operating Officer Vivian Eliopoulos were present – along with the Garkfinkel family, Windsor, Foundation staff and MP Jody Wilson-Raybould – at a March 16 event to acknowledge the significance of the gift and its recent installation.

Windsor’s own healing came as a result of a stay at VGH in 2003. “I received great care,” he reflected. “Seeing the artwork at VGH, you feel a little more welcome. I hope the same happens with other patients, especially indigenous patients, and that they feel more comfortable.”

Wilson-Raybould spoke about the importance of representing art like Windsor’s. “I’m glad to have been here to celebrate and honour this amazing artwork and to celebrate this moment of truth and reconciliation and the coming together of the rich cultures that exist in British Columbia and across Canada,” she said. Windsor’s artwork can be found on the third floor of Jim Pattison Pavilion in the Sassafras cafeteria.

For information on donating to the Foundation’s Gift of Arts Program, visit: here.