The Year of the Tiger begins on Feb. 1, so when designing the team's warmup jerseys, Vancouver artist Trevor Lai drew inspiration from the apex predator, turning the Canucks' classic orca into a tiger. "It's inspiring to imagine an orca transforming into a tiger, symbolizing we can become anything we want to be, including a better neighbor and ally for each other," Lai said.
Introducing the 2022 #Canucks Lunar New Year jersey!
Designed by artist Trevor Lai (@UPStudiosWorld), the jersey will be worn by the team in warm ups as part of our Lunar New Year celebration later this season. pic.twitter.com/F62hyZlMiE
On the shoulder patch, Lai incorporated Millennium Gate in Vancouver's Chinatown. "The Canucks' Chinese name is 加人队 (jia ren dui) and I imagined the characters fitting into the gateway perfectly," he said.
Encompassing and celebrating the Chinese community, Trevor Lai (@UPStudiosWorld) brought to life the shoulder patch on the #LunarNewYear jersey.
加 (first character for Canada), 人 (people), 队 (team) weaved into Vancouver's Chinatown Millennium Gate are prominently featured. pic.twitter.com/xJkUGM0nRp
The words at the top of Millennium Gate read, "remember the past and look forward to the future," and Lai felt it was important to include that vision. "We all want to look forward to the future, but we have to learn from our past so we can get better together," Lai said.
Tonight, we celebrate #LunarNewYear alongside our diverse East Asian communities. We are proud to stand with partners like @Elimin8_hate in the fight against racism and amplification of the work of designers like Trevor Lai (@UPStudiosWorld).
The Lunar New Year warmup jerseys will be auctioned off to benefit #Elimin8Hate, a local community organization that strives for racial equity and an inclusive society for all Asian Canadians.
