VMF 2020: Mount Pleasant
Vancouver Mural Festival 2020 saw more murals this year than ever before. Spanning across 9 neighbourhoods, there were over 60 new murals brought to Vancouver. As the birthplace of VMF, Mount Pleasant has become the hub of murals and street art in Vancouver. This year, twelve new murals were painted in the neighbourhood, with most done by first time muralists! Trendy cafes, craft breweries, restaurants, galleries and local boutiques line the streets of Mount Pleasant for 20+ blocks so make sure you have a full day for exploring!
HOT TIP: Use the Collections in our free Mobile App to plan your day of exploring with interactive guides that feature Indigenous Art in Mount Pleasant, take you on a Family Mural Walk, through Mount Pleasant Breweries & Cafes and down Main Alley + 7 1/2 Lane! These self guided mural tours are a perfect Covid-safe, social distanced activity to do with your household this winter.
STEVE SMITH
“Love, Knowledge and Peace”
3425 Main Street
Mural Statement:
“I create art based on Indigenous Northwest Coast design elements, and incorporate playfulness through vivid and unexpected colours. My goal as an artist is to create work that amplifies messages of love, harmony, peace, friendship, and their uniting characteristic of connection. I believe we are all connected to everyone, and to everything. My work focuses on the positive aspects of life and every piece I make is created with these intentions of unity in mind.
In Northwest Coast First Nations mythology ‘Raven’ is often referred to as the Trickster, Creator and transformer of the world. The mural I have created for the Vancouver Mural Festival is titled, ‘Love, Knowledge and Peace”. The archetype of Raven, the ability for transformation, and the hope to strive toward peace inspires this painting.
Depicted in this piece are three large baby ravens looking skyward, their mouths open, waiting to be fed. I envision their mother, the creator feeding them with the essential gifts of nourishment: love, knowledge and peace. These are gifts we all desire, and that we can give to ourselves and give to each other. The oversized design of the ravens, as well as the vibrancy of colours are used to evoke a playful, and powerful feeling, reminding us to love, to seek knowledge, and to hunger for peace.”
Sponsored by Wondershare
“Strange Peoples Arrive Through the Winds and Waters: A Story That Never Ends”
75 W 3rd Ave
"shḵwen̓ kwi en sna, chen íp'is kwi kwshámin ts;simtelot. chen tína7 tl'a átsnach úxwumixw.*
Mural Statement:
“The imagery I created for my mural shows a sign in the shape and look of the "Welcome to Vancouver" sign, I changed it to state the peoples who belong to the land, water, and skies. The Tsleil waututh, Squamish, and Musqueam peoples. There is a wolf person, they are saying "ti encha7 chexw" asking the strange flying object "where are you from?" It is common when we have guests arrive we are able to recognize the people through their clothes (regalia), canoe style, and especially the songs they sing as they enter another's territory. The wolf is holding a rattle with the hope and possibility it may be a friendly encounter."
“Arctic Projections”
106 E 7th Ave
Mural Statement:
“Tabouli’s approach to design and illustration focuses on isometric projection and manipulation of depth and altitude. He breaks objects down into components and reconfigures them to create abstract, yet familiar, spatial forms.
In keeping with the VMF theme of Climate Change this year, his mural emphasizes a very important aspect of our planet that is at major risk—wildlife. Arctic animals are painted using an architectural technique called exploded isometric projection. This way of drawing is typically used to represent objects so that all facets of a whole can be represented as a sum of their parts. These intricate depictions showcase just how beautifully complex these endangered animals are, as a reminder of their importance to our planet.
In the background, fragmented icebergs float along the arctic seascape. Though, upon a closer look, the icebergs are composed of plastic bags. The scene is cut in section, and reveals that the icebergs are indeed made of ice, but smothered in plastic. The plastic bags represent consumerism — a leading cause of climate change— in a succinct way. The mural symbolizes consumerism-driven climate change as a direct correlation to wildlife facing extinction. In other words, the animals are exploding both figuratively, and perhaps literally.”
Also featured in our Raising Environmental Awareness With Public Art blog post.
Sponsored by Wondershare
“Hope Through Ashes: A Requiem for Hogan’s Alley”
Entrance of Georgia Viaduct at Union Street
Mural Statement:
“In painting a mural about Hogan’s Alley on the Georgia Viaduct, I am adding art to the very instrument that led to the destruction of Vancouver’s first concentrated black community. This reflection serves as a somber tone, placing the painting within smoke from the neighborhood’s demolition.
Only upon learning of the resilience of the black community within Hogan’s Alley can hope be conveyed through its former residents, their legacies rising from the ashes.
Laying lifeless is Yellow Kid, a prominent character from the comic strip Hogan’s Alley, from which the name for the neighborhood was influenced and derived. The strip dealt with a rowdy New York neighborhood, its influence resonating with a minstrel show feel. The death of Yellow Kid symbolizes an end to making a novelty out of the black community that resided in Hogan’s Alley.
A rose grows next to Yellow Kid. As the official flower of Vancouver, the rose symbolizes the spirit of Vancouver continuing to bloom within a light that is the spirit of the black community.
The light expands through the smoke, revealing Fielding Spotts, one of the first settlers to migrate from California to British Columbia in 1858. At his side is his son Fielding William Spotts Jr. Vie and Robert Moore then appear, owners of the famous restaurant Vie’s Chicken and Steaks.
Next is Leonard Lane, a civil rights activist who was refused service in local restaurants. Barbara Howard then sprints forward as the first black female athlete to represent Canada in
International competition, and the first visible minority educator on the Vancouver School Board.
The legendary Crump Twins perform next to Ernie King, owner of the Harlem Nocturne, the only Black-owned nightclub in Vancouver, and founder of the city’s first black theatre - Sepia Players.
The iconic Gibson family - Thelma, Leonard, Austin ‘Chic’, and Syd Risby, dance through the smoke.
The Collins brothers then appear notable porters from a rich history of black porters in Hogan’s Alley. Fred Deal looks on, renowned for his wrongful conviction in shooting a police officer. Next is the African Methodist Episcopal Fountain Chapel, one of the only remaining Hogan’s Alley constructions.
Last but not least is Nora Hendrix, a prominent resident of Hogan’s Alley and grandmother to the late Jimi Hendrix, who worked at Vie’s Chicken and Steaks and helped gather support for Fred Deal.
Nora holds up a shield against oncoming axes, oars and tidal waves. Along with the mural crown and surrounding mountains, these symbols are from the City of Vancouver flag, representing the city’s order to demolish Hogan’s Alley. Also derived from the flag is Nora’s shield, conveying the city’s internal conflict.
Hogan’s Alley embodied hope for a thriving united black community in BC. In destroying Hogan’s Alley, the City of Vancouver destroyed a black community but not black culture as it continues to flourish in diaspora within Vancouver’s cultural fabric.
Time will tell if the ongoing evolution of black culture within Vancouver can bring another community to fruition.”
“Presence”
7 W 7th Ave
Mural Statement:
This piece features a central character facing the viewer, embracing a small piece of darkness -acknowledging their uncomfortable feelings. Above their head, a cloud of light and 2 small rainbows as ears guide this loving gesture. Framing the scene, a bright rainbow in the front, and a dark shape in the background symbolize circumstances out of their reach. Uncertainty will always keep on flowing. And yet, the expression in their face tells us that it’s ok. A projection of equanimity that may accompany the passerby. The character has no human features, open for everyone to relate to, and the abstract elements are meant to reinforce the spiritual nature of the scene.
Read more about Animalitoland’s mural HERE!
Sponsored by Low Tide Properties
“Entangled Flow”
31 W 3rd Ave
Mural Statement
“The world now is not what our parents had expected, it is not what their parents expected, nor theirs. Ours and each new generation faces the effects of neglect that spreads through the world like poison in veins. It takes form in our hatred, in our carelessness, and in our environment. In the last century human beings have uprooted the natural world in attempts for control over our environment, something we were never meant to do. From this uprooting came the toxic side of humanity with a mess of problems enough to disturb the mind forever. Our issues are entangled, but so are our solutions. It lies within ourselves and with each other. If we stop and look at our own pasts, we will see the entanglement like knotted twisted roots. Perhaps when we then look forward, we will become a connected flow in which we find our ties to all that is around us. Allowing us to heal what had been damaged, and create a flourishing future for life on Earth.
Originally I planned to leave the statement to end there, but I feel it is important to share the personal aspects of ‘Entangled Flow’. At this point even our social environment has been put under a big change. Being a citizen in Washington State meant I was unable to cross the border unless I had dual citizenship, which I don’t. This piece was originally intended to only speak on climate change, but as I came to finishing it’s design I saw it reflecting the past half year. In the year 2020 I’ve seen the world’s path transforming, I’ve seen the paths of my friends and family change, and my own has shifted and intersected with others in ways I never expected. Even the mural’s path changed, the design now being painted on the wall by Oksana Gaidacheva, an amazing artist from Belarus now living in Vancouver. Who I hope to continue to connect to in the future.
Right now I can only hope Earth’s change will ultimately be for the good, but there’s a feeling it is.”
Also featured in our Raising Environmental Awareness With Public Art blog post.
Sponsored by Wondershare
“Waggle Dance”
3207 Main Street
Mural Statement:
“This mural is about honeybees and the important role they play in the natural world and our food production. Specifically I’ll be painting about the waggle dance. It’s something that honeybees do in the hive to tell the other bees where they should go to find nectar from the most productive flowers. When a bee goes out and collects nectar from a new flower source, it then comes back to the hive. It gathers the attention of the other bees by vibrating its’ abdomen. Once it has their attention it starts to move and vibrate in certain ways to tell the other bees where to go to find that food source. The bees then go out and collect nectar from it. I am interested in highlighting this communication because bees are responsible for pollinating a large percentage of our food crops and it is important that we are educated about how they live and how we can protect them. Much pollinator habitat has been lost to agriculture, resource extraction, and urban and suburban development.
The relationship between bees and flowers blooming in the spring is disjointed due to climate change. Temperatures are shifting in the spring, which means that flowers are blooming at different times. This affects the bees and their feeding patterns. The environmental stress put on the bees from a variety of sources is also increasing their rate of disease, infections and parasites. Air pollution and pesticides are putting stress on them as well.
I feel the role of public art is to not only bring beauty to public spaces to inspire people; but it is also about bringing important issues to the forefront of people’s minds. Climate change is a very pressing issue and art can play a role in encouraging people to continue to think about it. I feel that this mural does that while shining a spotlight on the inspiring beauty of nature.
My nature-based representational artwork generally highlights life cycles that exist in our environment that are part of a larger ecosystem. Each painting illuminates the stages of growth or the characteristics of a living thing. Through geometric patterning and shape I create a coat of arms to reflect the sacred quality of these organisms that have evolved over thousands of years. Symbolism through micro and macro imagery tell a story of rich life, presently threatened by environmental stress and climate change.”
Also featured in our Raising Environmental Awareness With Public Art blog post.
Sponsored by Goodbye Graffiti
“Reclaimed”
195 W Broadway
Mural Statement:
“There is a choice to make, with relative urgency, to coexist sustainably with nature. The Earth will survive without us, and will certainly flourish. But to ensure our own survival, we need to tread more lightly and stop destroying our home. Our disconnect from nature is the inspiration behind this futuristic outlook. Humanity is on the verge of extinction while nature grows back with vigor and thrives in spite of us, taking its world back.”
Also featured in our Raising Environmental Awareness With Public Art blog post.
“Intersect”
2410 Columbia Street
Mural Statement:
“I wanted this piece to play with the traditional expectations of portraiture, to create a playful barrier between the viewer and the subject and in doing so to invite contemplation on what it means to look and to see. The location of this mural in a mundane parking lot made me want to produce something that is at once surreal and unexpected, to transport the viewer to an alternate imaginative environment as they go about their daily lives.”
Sponsored by Wondershare
“Vancouver: A People-Powered Future”
298 E 11th Ave
Mural Statement:
“This mural shows a green and inclusive Vancouver in the future, after a group of citizens, led by a rocket, have taken to the streets to voice their opinions and take control. Oakland hopes that his piece will invite people in, and stimulate great conversations between his peers and other young Vancouverites about what is possible if you put your mind to it.
Sponsored by Wondershare
GRAFFITI JAM
3011 Main Street
The Graffiti Jam at this year’s festival took place at the back of 3011 Main Street, offering a massive wall space for four incredible artists, Owes, Arise, Wrues and Zedek to collaborate on a piece that flows seamlessly through each of their unique styles.
Artists’ Statement:
“Graffiti for us is an outlet to express ourselves by the manipulation of letters forms through shapes and colours. As students of the graffiti art form, we’ve been blessed to have been given the blueprint to study, learn, and put into practice. The knowledge and core principles we’ve inherited from the graffiti writers that paved the way before us have given us a foundation in which to create and mould our own styles and voices from. We strive to continue exploring the graffiti art form and to take it to new heights, while leaving an original and indelible mark on the graffiti culture, hopefully inspiring younger generations to follow.”
Untitled
2410 Columbia Street
VMF Head Office was beautified with work designed by Debra Sparrow and Gabriel Hall! We are so lucky to get to enjoy this piece every day.
See the other 8 neighbourhoods’ new murals from VMF2020: Gastown, Marpole, River District, South Granville, Strathcona, Downtown, West End, and Robson.
Download our free Mobile App for self guided tours and more information on the 250+ murals across the city! Look for the "2020 Mount Pleasant" Collection to find these new murals!
Photos by Gabriel Martins
