yyctimes

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the latest creative news from FooBar about art, design and business.

    What's Hot

    Enbridge to jointly develop blue ammonia facility

    March 31, 2023

    Two months before election, NDP has momentum, Leger poll suggests

    March 31, 2023

    WestJet pilots to vote on strike action after talks stall

    March 31, 2023
    • Home
    • Contact Us
    Facebook Twitter
    yyctimes
    yyctimes
    Home » Calgary tunnel mural that deterred graffiti for 5 years has been removed
    yyctimes

    Calgary tunnel mural that deterred graffiti for 5 years has been removed

    yyctimesBy yyctimesDecember 5, 2022No Comments5 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Telegram Pinterest Tumblr Reddit Email
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    The pedestrian tunnel under 14th Street through Confederation Park in northwest Calgary used to be illuminated by a colorful mural. It has now been stripped back to the original dull grey.

    The only colors in the tunnel Monday were from sparks as city crews removed the last remnants of the art that was painted five years ago.

    “For many years the tunnel was perfect,” says Yvonne Brouwers, who regularly walks through Confederation Park.

    “Nobody put graffiti over the mural. Then, just recently, we saw graffiti go overboard. We talk about the mural every time we come here and we thought, ‘It’s really sad that there’s graffiti now,'” Brouwers said.

    “We loved the mural. It’s beautiful. It’s real art and that’s what made this tunnel special.”

    Two murals were created in Confederation Park – one under 14th Street and the other in the 10th Street pedestrian tunnel.

    Story continues below advertisement

    The murals were commissioned by the city as part of the Street Art for Youth program and completed in 2017.

    Read more:

    Tunnel graffiti art, creative playground unveiled at Calgary’s Confederation Park for Canada Day

    AJA Louden was the lead artist and mentor for this piece.

    He led a group of youth in workshops that focused on the tools and techniques of urban muralism and street art.


    Click to play video: 'Vandals hit Calgary Beltline mural project'

    1:46
    Vandals hit Calgary Beltline mural project


    The city says this year the mural on 14th Street was vandalized beyond repair, and the decision was made to decommission it. The mural on 10th Street was not damaged.

    Louden is neither surprised nor disappointed that his art was covered in graffiti and eventually removed. He said some of his work was inspired by the graffiti that used to be in the tunnel.

    Story continues below advertisement

    “I don’t take it personally at all. It’s just a natural home for that type of art and that type of expression and that’s what that tunnel was full of before we got down there.

    “So I really couldn’t take it too personally if people still find it a home to try to be creative, or maybe find an urge to respond to what they’ve already seen on the wall,” Louden said .

    Read more:

    Street artists draw on Vancouver’s first legal graffiti wall

    According to Julie Yepishina-Geller Cavanagh, the city’s public art liaison, the city said the artworks on the site had a positive impact on the community and “were, for the most part, effective in reducing graffiti”.

    “There is definitely a school of thought that those who put graffiti on walls will not put graffiti on other people’s artwork, or for that matter, other people’s graffiti,” said Ward 7 Coun. Terry Wong. “So having artwork seems to be a bit of a deterrent.”


    Click to play video: 'Famous graffiti artist completes 'world's tallest painted mural' in downtown Calgary'

    4:07
    Renowned graffiti artist completes ‘world’s tallest painted mural’ in downtown Calgary


    Louden said part of what he likes about street art is that it’s not forever.

    Story continues below advertisement

    “Sometimes our idea of ​​art is that you paint something on the wall and that thing stays exactly as you painted it for the rest of its life. But when you see graffiti or street art, the wall is constantly changing.

    “It’s a graffiti art gallery that rotates constantly. I think it’s really exciting and invigorating.”

    The city says the murals were commissioned with the intention of having a five-year lifespan and there are no immediate plans for their replacement.

    “While we have no current plans for another project in that space, we welcome ideas from members of the community who may want to work with an artist to replace the mural,” Yepishina-Geller Cavanagh said.

    “For example, the community association can start a project and the public art team will help connect them with the right people at the city for approval.”

    Read more:

    Deadly stretch of Calgary road replaced with switchbacks

    Louden is excited to see what the tunnel will light up down the road.

    “I would like to see more spaces like this transformed into opportunities for artists of all kinds to experience painting at scale. Mural painting has now become a very popular movement and artists need a space where they can learn this art form.

    Story continues below advertisement

    “Even just learning how to paint something in that tunnel can be very helpful for young emerging artists,” Louden said.

    Back in 2017, he led a group of youth aged 12 to 17 in workshops that focused on the history, culture, tools and techniques of urban muralism and street art.

    “I would like to see it continue to be a home for community art, because that’s what that mural was about in the beginning,” Louden said.

    “It was me collaborating with a group of youth and a local poet to create something new together.”

    17

    AJA Louden at work on the mural on March 4, 2021.

    Eric Beck/Global News

    27

    AJA Louden works on his mural on March 4, 2021.

    Morgan Black/Global News

    37

    This Oct. 20, 2019 file photo shows multiple layers of graffiti covering a mural in Edmonton painted by street artist AJA Louden.

    47

    This Oct. 20, 2019 file photo shows multiple layers of graffiti covering a mural in Edmonton painted by street artist AJA Louden.

    Julien Fournier / Global News

    57

    Edmonton-based street artist AJA Louden.

    Credit: Facebook, AJA Louden Studios

    67

    A mural by Edmonton artist AJA Louden of climate activist Greta Thunberg at 105 Avenue & 97 Street.

    Global News

    Story continues below advertisement

    77

    Artist AJA Louden painted a mural to honor the late Joey Moss. Nov 5 2020.

    Julien Fournier, Global News

    © 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.



    Source link

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    yyctimes
    • Website

    Related Posts

    Enbridge to jointly develop blue ammonia facility

    March 31, 2023

    WestJet pilots to vote on strike action after talks stall

    March 31, 2023

    1 person dead after serious collision on Highway 2A near High River, Alta. – Calgary

    March 31, 2023

    RCMP investigation closes Highway 552 near Okotoks

    March 31, 2023

    How Chinatowns in Western Canada are evolving amid business closures

    March 31, 2023

    Trans Albertans find joy in community in the face of rising hatred: ‘We stand together’

    March 31, 2023

    Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

    Don't Miss
    yyctimes

    Enbridge to jointly develop blue ammonia facility

    By yyctimesMarch 31, 2023

    By The workers The Canadian Press Posted March 31, 2023 3:25 pm Scale back the…

    Two months before election, NDP has momentum, Leger poll suggests

    March 31, 2023

    WestJet pilots to vote on strike action after talks stall

    March 31, 2023

    Braid: New poll shows a tight, unpredictable battle for the province

    March 31, 2023
    Our Picks

    Enbridge to jointly develop blue ammonia facility

    March 31, 2023

    Two months before election, NDP has momentum, Leger poll suggests

    March 31, 2023

    WestJet pilots to vote on strike action after talks stall

    March 31, 2023

    Braid: New poll shows a tight, unpredictable battle for the province

    March 31, 2023

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the latest creative news from SmartMag about art & design.

    Our Picks

    Enbridge to jointly develop blue ammonia facility

    March 31, 2023

    Two months before election, NDP has momentum, Leger poll suggests

    March 31, 2023

    WestJet pilots to vote on strike action after talks stall

    March 31, 2023
    New Comments

      Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.