Blending Art, Culture, and Collective Vision
A new mural in Downtown Courtenay is set to be unveiled on September 13th at the new Immigrant Welcome Centre LINC (Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada) space. This vibrant piece of public art embodies the essence of community engagement and collaboration, reflecting the diverse stories and symbols that make our community unique.
The mural project is a partnership between Comox Valley Arts and the Immigrant Welcome Centre’s LINC Program. While it will undoubtedly enhance the aesthetic of the Downtown area, its primary purpose is to speak to the experience of newcomers and reflect on the question of “what makes you feel welcome?”
Local artists Cora Silvestru and Emily Thiessen were selected for this project, both bringing deep personal connections with newcomer lived experience, upholding the values scaffolding this project. Silvestru and Thiessen have separate artistic practices, however when collaborating they work under the collective name “night+day.”
The project began with an extensive Community Engagement and Design session, where the artists met with students at the LINC, shared information about their backgrounds and participated in conversation circles around the big questions guiding the mural’s development. Critical to these engagement sessions was the LINC team at the Immigrant Welcome Centre who worked closely with Comox Valley Arts and the artists to ensure the engagement sessions were meaningful and real. This collaborative effort culminated in the mural’s first design concept, which was shared back with the students as a “community check-in” point – a key feature of the community engagement plan. This check-in allowed the LINC community to weigh in on whether the mural’s composition and messaging reflected accurately what was shared during the engagement sessions, providing assurance that the depth and meaning of those conversations was not lost.
Once the final design was approved by the LINC community, the artists worked to select the paint and ensure the colours provided by the paint manufacturer matched the design – which was more complex than it might seem. This process required manual color mixing when off-the-shelf options didn’t meet the mural’s exact needs.
After that came the mural tracing phase which involved a blend of digital projection and freehand chalk tracing, laying the groundwork for the detailed painting that followed. Multiple coats were applied to create a solid colour block, sometimes requiring four or five layers of paint.
Several dozen hours of work and about fifteen liters of paint later, the mural is nearly ready for public viewing. The final result is a testimony to the power of community engaged art and the value of deep listening.
“The mural has already captured the attention of students at the LINC – they are moved seeing their story visually represented.” Said Esther Karasova LINC Coordinator, Assessor and Lead Instructor.
Comox Valley Arts and the LINC Team are hosting an official opening for the mural on September 13 from 5:00 – 6:30PM. This is a free public event celebrating the mural, the artists and community that worked together to bring it to life.
Join us for the opening, or walk past the mural located at 407 5th Street Downtown Courtenay.
