Illustration

An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in published media.

  • Along the Bow

    You’ll find the Chinese zodiac hidden across the mural, in traditional Chinese lettering is the mention of home of the ginger beef and the Bow River, and some fun characters are playing around the mural that weren’t depicted in the original, such as a fisherman on the boat.

    The mural is 135 feet wide and 55 feet tall. We two of us painted the mural using a boomlift and paint sprayer/spray cans over the course of 40 days during the hottest August in 10 years. We had assistance with the traditional Chinese characters to ensure stylistic accuracy.

  • Happy Painting

    This mural was painted by Gibril Bangura, who is an artist from Sierra Leone, who now lives in Edmonton Alberta. His work is full of bright colours, in which Bangura states that colour is a language that has no barriers and unifies the universe.

  • Straddle

    This was my first trip to Winnipeg and I was pretty charmed by it. It feels a bit like an alternate dimension Edmonton but a bit grungier, a bit more 70s, really rad. I took inspiration from the colours of the buildings and the old school signs here, and that 70s vibe, and made this still life that hints at vintage sci-fi paperback novels. The objects straddle a river, a reference to the black and white piece above with text from Katherena Vermette.

  • Tallest Poppy Murals

    Originally a two-panel mural, only one panel remains on what was formerly known as the Tallest Poppy, a now closed restaurant in Winnipeg. What remains is Ekene Maduka’s painting of a blue and red peacock, which used to stand next to Mercedes Emeka-Maduka’s painting of a black and orange vase filled with pink and red flowers, on the same orange background.

  • Mosaic Sea: Hope

    This mural is located on the RaY building (Resource Assistance for Youth). It is a fragment of what was a larger mural located in front the pedestrian walkway at the Winnipeg Art Gallery, during the construction of the Inuit Art Centre Qaumajuq. The larger mural was displayed until Qaumajuq’s opening in 2021.

  • RaY Inc. x Art City

    This mural was painted by participants from RaY inc. (Resource Assistance for Youth), a nonprofit organization that supports youth in Winnipeg. The project was led by Jessica Canard. It depicts four figures smudging in a field, representing the diversity of Winnipeg’s West Broadway community. To the left is a map of the city, with its two main rivers prominently visible; the Red River and the Assiniboine. This is a reminder of the importance of our rivers, and their role as the original trade routes of Turtle Island.

  • The Eau Claire Lumber Company

    This large woodcut by Eveline tells the story of the lumber mill, from logging in the Kananaskis area, floating the lumber down the Bow river to Prince’s island, to the sawmill in the City. The river also generated electricity for the lumber mill. The mill was relocated to heritage Park and can be seen there. Much of the wood was used for the railway stays of the developing Canadian Pacific Railway company.

  • N/A

    The concept for Claire Coutts’ portion of the utility box project was in collaboration with Sylvia Arthur. While researching, discussing with people in the area and loitering by our location, Sylvia and Claire noticed similar things. The area has a lot of pedestrian foot traffic, but few people who aren’t in transit to somewhere else. Claire began to think about the contrast of public and private for residents in a downtown setting. She created these linocuts of hands involved in domestic activity in contrast to Sylvia Arthurs imagery of industrial cranes skyline buildings, bridging the gap between the visible and invisible in an urban setting.

  • N/A

    I’ve been feeling a connection to the Raven Animal Totem for a while now and this spot finally felt like the perfect place to paint it.
    I was stoked to meet multiple people with personal connections, stories and tattoos of this beautiful animal. Hearing their tales and appreciation for the Raven was magical and made depicting this large symbol of the Death / Rebirth cycle especially memorable for me

  • The Mojave Phone Booth

    In my design, I create the illusion of an oasis within an urban location. I wanted to commemorate the curious and serendipitous connections made in places of importance which are often overlooked. I chose to reference The Mojave Phone Booth, commenting on liminality and mirroring the history of 11th Ave in many ways.