Aperture Coffee Bar

Beyond selling delicious coffee and snacks in an elegant environment, Aperture Coffee Bar is a living work of art. From the texture of the hardwood tables, to the paintings on the walls, to the book titles in the library, the purposeful details are what give this coffee shop its distinct taste and enjoyable atmosphere.

Ryul Kwon, the owner and founder, searched Vancouver for the right spot to found his vision of a coffee shop and a fluid artistic space. Kwon has previously worked as a painter, a photographer and a barista; the cafe embodies the unification of these skills and interests.

Two of the elaborate paintings adorning the inside of the building are Kwon originals, depicting the Vancouver cityscape. On the back wall, there is an ongoing dartboard challenge, the winners of which have their Polaroid picture up on the wall. The most frequently featured tunes audible in the background throughout the day are Nujabes, a Japanese hip-hop Jazz artist and the 500 book titles in the trade-in library offer distraction from a rainy Vancouver day.

“It's kind of my taste, but I think it's really good,” says Kwon who has influenced every facet of the shop with his stylistic outlook.

“The concept of this place is just being artistic. Music, books, paintings, pictures, atmosphere — everything, even meeting people, can be art I think. I want people to enjoy what they find here.”