Speakers’ Corner at Jim Deva Plaza
Vancouver BC
“A safe space, inspired by Jim Deva’s lifelong passion for freedom of sexuality, gender diversity, and the fight against censorship. Where LGBTQ people and allies can meet, share ideas freely, dare to dream, and love unapologetically.”
Speakers’ Corner, affectionately known as the Megaphone, uniquely combines play and art with a respectful memorial that is reflective of the community, and functions as a multivalent component of a new public space. The plaza’s namesake, Jim Deva, was a beloved community member, highly respected small business owner, and advocate for free speech and equal rights in Vancouver’s LGBTQ2+ community and in Canada.
The design had to be colourful and bold, have spotlighting capability, and could be used in various ways by a diversity of persons. The Megaphone is inspired by the formal geometries of megaphones, gramophones, and flowers. With support from City staff, Hapa led focused consultations with key stakeholders representing the city’s LGBTQ2+ Advisory Committee, the Persons with Disabilities Advisory Committee, and Jim Deva’s surviving family.
In addition to a soapbox, it has been successfully used as an amplifier, stage, bubble machine, umbrella and site of a poignantly impromptu memorial for a young man who frequented the plaza. Although it is small in scale, The Megaphone represents a larger-than-life individual, who brought big impact to the community. By providing a safe space for public engagement and free speech, our work helps spread Deva’s message of equality to a wider audience. The Megaphone serves as a bright, uplifting, recognizable, and functional element in the plaza with a rich and layered narrative – a fitting dedication.
