The Amsterdam Rainbow Dress visit to Vancouver

The Amsterdam Rainbow
Dress visit to Vancouver

The Amsterdam Rainbow Dress will be visiting Vancouver from August 3 to August 5, ahead of the 2023 Vancouver Pride Parade. The dress depicts flags from countries where it is punishable by law to be LGBTQIA+, is used to encourage debate and awareness about inclusion and equal rights even beyond the place where the dress is shown.

The Amsterdam Rainbow Dress is a 52-foot-tall work of living art made from the flags of the 68 countries where being LGBTIQ+ is punishable by law. It also includes the flags of eight countries in which homosexual acts can result in the death penalty. Since its creation in 2016, the Amsterdam Rainbow Dress has traveled around the world to call attention to the fight for equality, inclusiveness, and tolerance. Arnout van Krimpen, the dress’ creator, adds: “In addition to our call for eliminating existing anti LGBTIQ+ legislations, we want to make our own community and our allies constantly aware that freedom needs to be maintained. Freedom needs love, freedom needs care because it is the most precious thing we have.”

The Netherlands is a strong advocate for LGBTIQ+ rights and in 2001 became the first country to legalize same-sex marriage. The Dutch organization for LGBTIQ+ (COC) founded in 1946, is the oldest worldwide. LGBTIQ+ has been at the heart of the Dutch government’s human rights policy for decades.

The Dress has been modelled by a variety of models from the global LGBTQIA+ community in various countries, including Australia, Denmark, Mozambique, South Africa, the United States and Sweden. In 2021, the dress visited Canada’s east coast.

The dress will be photographed by Jamie Mann in the British Columbia Parliament Building in Victoria, at the Vancouver Art Gallery and on Jericho Beach. During these shoots, the dress will be worn by three well-known LGBTQIA+ community members, Kendall Gender (runner up Canada’s Drag Race season 2), Jaylene Thyme (two-spirited indigenous advocate) and Norma Lize (trans activist and member of Rainbow Refugee).

Would you like to see the Amsterdam Rainbow Dress in person? The dress will be on display in the following locations:

Thursday August 3^rd: From 11:15 to 12:00 at the back of the Victoria Parliament Buildings

Friday August 4^th: From 4 pm to 8 pm at the Hornby street entrance of the Vancouver Art Gallery

Saturday August 5^th: From noon to 7 pm at the Vancouver Pride Festival.

During the visit in Vancouver, the Amsterdam Rainbow Dress will partner with the Vancouver Art Gallery.

Media release and image provided by Lucie Mink, on behalf of the Consulate General of the Netherlands. Photo: Amsterdam Rainbow Dress Foundation & Adam Zivo