We had big plans for our 10th anniversary edition and were just about to unveil a magical lineup when it became clear that the COVID-19 crisis would change everything. Faced with the choice to either cancel the festival or reinvent it, we decided to take on the challenge and continue to serve our community in the way we know best. The crisis only strengthened our belief in the transformative power of the arts. Early on in the pandemic, it became clear that people once again turned to the arts for levity, solace, and to make sense of our predicament while imagining our futures.

We made the decision to take our events online, entering an already crowded digital space with care and consideration. Our goal was to offer a series of carefully curated events that would help our audience feel a sense of solidarity and purpose in creating a post-pandemic world—not a return to normalcy, but a world we could reimagine and remake.

Indian Summer Festival has long built its reputation on audacious, thoughtful curation, and our 10th anniversary edition saw a stunning global cast of talent applying their creative power to address the unsettling times we found ourselves in. From Grammy Award-winning musicians to emerging poets, Nobel Prize-winning economists to visionary environmental warriors, this year’s programming spanned literary dialogues, intellectual debates, musical performances, and interactive culinary and visual arts experiences.

Though we missed our in-person gathering—an event that has become an integral part of Vancouver's summer—we were excited to bring people together in a digital community, a community we needed more than ever. By removing more barriers to accessibility, we were able to reach and engage an international audience. We thank our loyal artists, audience members, sponsors, funders, and donors who, in their own ways, assured us they would be with us as we continue to reshape our work.