Wang Shu (Ada) is an 18-year-old female from China. She is currently studying piano performance at the Eastman School of Music in the United States. She is a student of the famous pianist Professor Joseph Rackers. She won the second place in the gold medal of the Asia-Pacific Finals of the Mendelssohn International Piano Competition (2022-2023) and the champion of the Steinway International Youth Piano Competition in China (2021-2023). She has held many solo concerts, including a solo performance at the Bechstein Concert Hall. - Participated in international stages such as the Vienna International Youth Music Festival and the China-Austria Cultural Exchange Concert. - Selected for the Huanglong Music Festival Master Class and received guidance from international pianist Bruce Brubaker.

Shu Wang was generously supported by the Helen Graham Artist Award.
 

Jiwang Yoo is a South Korean pianist currently studying at the Juilliard School under Hung-Kuan Chen. He previously studied with Minsoo Sohn and Jinsang Lee at the Korea National University of Arts and the Korea National Institute for the Gifted in Arts, where he was also a recipient of the KT&G Scholarship.

Jiwang has performed at major venues in South Korea, including Kumho Art Hall, Win Art Hall, and the Seoul Arts Center Recital Hall, as well as at the Museo Frédéric Chopin y George Sand in Valldemossa, Spain. A first prize winner in several national competitions, he has appeared as a soloist with the Seoul Orchestra and the Mostly Philharmonic Orchestra. He has also participated in masterclasses with Miroslav Kultyshev, Nelson Delle-Vigne Fabbri, Hee-Yeon Choi, and Arthur Greene.

Jiwang Yoo was generously supported by the Helen Graham Artist Award.

Tianhao Wu is a Chinese pianist who earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Piano Performance from the Manhattan School of Music. Mr. Wu is currently immersed in his Doctoral studies in Music Art at the University of Miami's Frost School of Music, under the tutelage of Santiago Rodriguez.

In the 2024 season, Mr. Wu won the Golden Award at the GOCAA New York International Music Competition in the Concerto Division by performing Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 22 in E-flat major with the Four Seasons Orchestra. In September, he was selected as a finalist in the 10th Seattle International Piano Competition. Additionally, he won first prize at the Universal Artists Festival International Music Competition, which earned him the opportunity to be a featured soloist performing a concerto with the International Chamber Orchestra at the Universal Artists Festival at the New England Conservatory. Mr. Wu also secured first prizes at the WPTA Finland International Piano Competition, the Golden Classical Music Award Competition, the Grand Metropolitan International Music Competition, and the Fourth Chinese National Piano Competition.

Mr. Wu participated in the Tianjin Juilliard Piano Festival, the Euro Arts Academy, the Todi 1st International Music Festival, and the 2016 KAWAI Master Class and Music Festival.

Tianhao Wu was generously supported by the Heather Edwards Artist Award.
 

Sarah Yang, age 19, is a second-year student at the Manhattan School of Music, where she studies with Professor Alexandre Moutouzkine. Beginning her piano studies at the age of 4, her principal teachers have included Rada Bukhman, Nicholas Rada, and Ilana Vered. Sarah is a repeat gold medalist of the Pacific International Youth Music Society Competition, and a silver medalist of the Vancouver International Music Competition and the Chopin NW Piano Competition. She was Overall Winner at the Vancouver Kiwanis Music Festival, and First Place at the Vancouver International Festival of Russian Music. She is also a prize-winner of the Seattle Young Artists Music Festival Association and the Canadian Music Competition. Sarah has played in numerous masterclasses including for Jerome Lowenthal, Ursula Oppens, Orli Shaham, John Perry, Spencer Myer, Christopher Harding, Ian Jones, Markus Groh, Genya Paley, and Dmitri Novgorodsky. Sarah has given performances in prestigious venues such as the Basilica di San Pietro (Perugia, Italy), Merkin Hall (New York, USA) and The Vancouver Playhouse (Vancouver, Canada).

Sarah Yang was generously supported by the Susan and Graeme McDonald Music Endowment.
 

Adam Sun is currently based in Vancouver as a student of the University of British Columbia, studying piano performance with professor Corey Hamm. Under his guidance and that of previous mentors, such as Irina Faletski and Sergei Saratovsky, Adam has pursued many performance opportunities, earning awards and placements at festivals and competitions such as the Canadian Music Competition, the Vancouver Kiwanis Festival, the Shean Piano Competition, and the VSO School of Music Concerto Competition. Adam received an opportunity to play for two concerts with the VSO, being one of two student pianists performing Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals and Carnival of Our Animals, a composition composed by William Rowson based on three animals of Coast Salish nations. Adam is an active collaborative and solo pianist who frequently engages in partnerships with singers and instrumentalists, premiering chamber music and art song compositions such as “Sunset” and “garden” by UBC composers Francis Reyes and Vivian Kwok.

Adam Sun was generously supported by the Cyril and Elizabeth Challice Fund for Musicians.
 

Yuchen (Vincent) Li, born in Beijing, China, began studying piano at five. He is currently a senior undergraduate at the Eastman School of Music under Dr. Joseph Rackers.

In June 2024, Vincent performed the first movement of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major, K. 467 with the Central Texas Philharmonic. His achievements include being the runner-up of the 2024 New York MTNA Young Artist Division, first prize in the 2022 Heddy Kilian Empire State Competition, and an invitation to perform in the Brampton Chamber Music Concert Series as a competition winner in 2019. He also won first place in the ARCT Etude group in 2018 at the North York Music Festival.

Vincent has participated in masterclasses and lessons with renowned pianists and educators, such as Logan Skelton, Richard Goode, HieYon Choi, Sean Duggan, Boris Slutsky, Anton Nel, Alexander Kobrin, Steven Spooner, Michelle Cann, Arthur Greene, Daria Rabotkina, James Giles, and Christopher Guzman. He is immensely grateful to his former teachers—Eldon Ng (Toronto, Canada), Dmitri Vorobiev (University of North Carolina School of the Arts), Daniela Ballek (Wiesbaden, Germany), and Haijun Yan (Beijing, China)—for their guidance and continuous support in his musical journey.

Vincent Li was generously supported by the Cyril and Elizabeth Challice Fund for Musicians.

Spanning almost two decades, Joleen Mitton’s modeling career took her across the globe, featuring in campaigns for renowned brands like Kenzo, Clinique, and Vivienne Westwood, as well as on countless runways in Asia. She also appeared in print advertisements for everything from high-tech air conditioners to Hello Kitty paraphernalia. However, Joleen’s passion extended far beyond the glamorous world of fashion.

In 2017, Joleen founded the world’s first Indigenous Fashion Week, Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week (VIFW), establishing a groundbreaking platform for celebrating and uplifting Indigenous fashion, art, and culture. Over the years, she has worked with more than 100 Indigenous designers and has collaborated with prominent organizations and events, including the Toronto Raptors, Truth and Reconciliation Day in Winnipeg, and the Vancouver Art Gallery’s FUSE. Through Indigenous fashion, Joleen has consistently created spaces for healing, education, and change.

Joleen also co-founded Supernaturals Modelling, the first Indigenous modeling agency, which serves as a platform to elevate Indigenous talent in the fashion industry. This agency works to challenge stereotypes, amplify Indigenous voices, and create opportunities for Indigenous models to thrive in a global industry.
As the founder and operator of All My Relations Ltd. and VIFW, Joleen has focused on producing fashion shows that exclusively feature clothing designed by local Indigenous designers and modeled by individuals of First Nation, Métis, and Inuit descent. Her work is deeply rooted in her desire to reclaim narratives and highlight the power of Indigenous voices through art, fashion, and community engagement.

Although Joleen appreciated the artistic aspects of the global fashion industry, she often felt disconnected from its lack of substance. This prompted her to redirect her focus toward creating meaningful connections in her community. Joleen dedicates her time to Indigenous community work. She collaborates with numerous non-profits, using art, fashion, and education to connect and inspire.

Through producing Indigenous fashion shows and organizing basketball tournaments across the city, Joleen has raised awareness about local Indigenous fashion and the Native basketball community. Her contributions include hosting tournaments, mentoring youth, and creating platforms that highlight the vibrancy of Indigenous talent.

A proud Cree woman, Joleen grew up in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside with her mother and spent significant time with her Kokum Alice Ward, who shaped her resilience and worldview. Following in her Kokum's footsteps, Joleen became a community support worker, assisting Indigenous youth in foster care, supporting families transitioning out of high-risk situations, and working closely with elders.
 

Caroline Phelps, whose ancestral name is QwAACWA from Ahousaht, BC, is of Nuu-chah-nulth, Stó:lō, and of Hawaiian descent. She is deeply committed to creating safe and empowering spaces for Indigenous artists, with a strong focus on advancing financial prosperity, economic sovereignty, and cultural self-determination. Caroline is a tireless advocate for Indigenous representation and leadership across the creative industries, working to ensure that Indigenous voices are not only heard but thrive. She currently serves as the General Manager of Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week, is a board member of Canoe Cultures, and is the owner of TATUS Talent Agency and President of the Board for TATUS Creative Society. Through her work, Caroline continues to uplift Indigenous communities and support the next generation of creators and leaders. 

Kaelen Wilson-Goldie is a journalist, critic, and art historian. She is the author of two books — Etel Adnan (2018) and Beautiful, Gruesome, and True: Artists at Work in the Face of War (2022) — and contributes regularly to Aperture, e-flux Criticism, 4Columns, and Mousse, among other publications. Wilson-Goldie was a practitioner in residence at NYU’s Hagop Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies in 2022 and won a grant from the Andy Warhol Foundation Art Writers Grant Program in 2013. 

She is a PhD candidate in art history and criticism at Stony Brook University, where her research focuses modernism, feminism, and decolonization in the Middle East and North Africa, emphasizing the work of groundbreaking but understudied women artists and the importance of cities such as Beirut, Cairo, and Algiers as major centers of art, culture, and political thought.