Panda-monium is about to descend upon Vancouver, thanks to the arrival of an incredible 888 pandas which will be on display this July and August.
Okay, they aren’t real pandas, but rather a traveling art installation of 888 papier-mâché pandas by French artist Paulo Grangeon. The exhibit, called 1600 Pandas+ (we’ll explain that title shortly) makes its North American debut in July in Metro Vancouver at Metropolis at Metrotown.
The exhibit will run from July 10 through Aug. 8, and aims to raise awareness of wildlife conservation, pandas and sustainability. All proceeds from this exhibit will be donated to WWF Canada to fund wildlife conservation research and education.
The 1600 Pandas+ World Tour in Canada kicks off their Vancouver-area run with a grand opening party on July 10, featuring the artist himself, who will be on hand.
The exhibition will feature various activities including a selfie station, contests including a chance to win a trip for four to see the pandas at the Calgary Zoo, and panda adoption. Visitors who would like to adopt a papier-mâché panda can pre-register at the exhibit by donating to WWF Canada and will be able to pick up their panda after the exhibit concludes.
Now, to decode the event name, since there are only 888 pandas coming to Vancouver: The 1600 Pandas World Tour was first launched in 2008 by the WWF and Grangeon, who handcrafted 1,600 papier-mâché pandas— the number of living pandas left in the wild at that time — with recycled materials.
Since then, the exhibit title has been modified to include a plus sign, because since 2008 we’ve had a 17% increase in the population of wild giant pandas to over 1,800, though panda conservation remains a pressing issue.
1600 Pandas+ World Tour
When: July 10 through August 8, 2018
Where: Metropolis at Metrotown – 4700 Kingsway, Burnaby
