Oral Interview with Anna Lutsky for the JMABC Artists Scribe. Interviewed by Helen Aqua. Anna was born in Tunis in 1952. She describes her family history, mostly situated within Tunisia, where her artistic influences came from her mother and sister. She recalls going to a strict French school in Tunis until the age of 16, when her family moved to a diverse kibbutz in Israel. She discusses the beginning of her art career as a young mother at the age of 22. Anna describes how her artwork acted as diaries for the places she lived throughout her life, including France, Italy and Cyprus, where the landscapes were the common sources of inspiration. She talks about how her art evolved into a mixed-media style that included painting on objects like furniture or clothing to repurpose their form and function, but one of her largest reoccurring themes remains nature. Anna tells of her most prominent memories of galleries and exhibitions where her art has been shown; this includes turning her home into a gallery, but also participating in World Expos abroad and being commissioned to represent France and Canada with her pieces. She further discusses how her art is more secular than reflective of Jewish connections.

Interview with Caryl Dolinko for On The Record: The BC Jewish Queer & Trans Oral History Project in collaboration with JQT Vancouver. Interviewed by Carmel Tanaka via remote Zoom video call. Caryl is a Jewish lesbian, born in Edmonton, Alberta and currently residing in Vancouver. Caryl recalls her parents and grandparents livelihoods in the theater and furniture industries and origins in Eastern Europe. She talks about being a tomboy from a young age and coming out at age 25 to the acceptance of her family. She also talks about the difficulty finding space to be a lesbian and Jewish at the same time up until the mid-2000s and how Vancouver Pride has sometimes been a conflicting place to be Jewish. She recalls travelling stories, including her time in Israel, England and Japan, and her various jobs alone the way. Caryl talks about the Lesbian Phone Tree in Vancouver, a network of lesbians phone calling one another with community updates and how it helped her found a queer women’s softball league. She talks about working with Vancouver Pride in the mid-2000s and growing it towards what it is today. She talks about financial barriers to Jewish community, becoming a part of the Jewish community in Mexico, and how being a Jew has become more important to her as she has aged.

Oral history interview with Jack Rose who was born in Vancouver in 1920, just one year after his parents had moved to the city. When the Second World War broke out Jack joined the Signal Corps in April 1940. Division was brought to Hong Kong in November and was captured by the Japanese and wasn't released until 1945.