The pandemic years have been anything but a slower time for the Chemainus Festival of Murals Society.
The society reflected back on its many projects in 2021 and 2020 during the annual general meeting last Thursday, April 21 and looked ahead to the remainder of 2022, with the reelection of some executive members and the addition of newcomers.
Tom Andrews continues as president, a position he’s held since 2010.
The remainder of the board members include: Shannon Bellamy (vice president); Sue Lindstrom (treasurer); Peter Collum (secretary and media liaison); Betty Short and Marlie Kelsey (retail); Cordell Ensign (community liaison); Art Carlyle (photography/graphics); and Peter Matthews (membership).
In 2021, members of the volunteer board of directors were active in many society endeavours, including the creation of three new murals that brings the overall total to 59, and the continued preservation of the murals and numerous sculptures.
The biggest project that actually encompassed more than a year was probably the completion and installation of a new sculpture of Stefan, one of the figures from the In Search of Snipes exhibit in the pond at Heritage Square created by artist Glenn Spicer.
“That was a lot of work with Glenn, ” said Andrews. “We spent probably a year and a half working with Glenn. We were fortunate to get him involved.”
Spicer died in September of last year.
The society also added the Chemainus Fire Hall 100th Anniversary mural done by Angela Carlson, a joint project with the Chemainus Fire Hall; the mural mosaic A Joyful Spring in Chemainus, done by members of the Chemainus Art Group, that now hangs in the Public Market in Chemainus; and the Mount Brenton Golf Course mural, done by Cim MacDonald that was a joint project with the golf course and installed on the clubhouse building.
“The fire hall made a large contribution toward the creation of that mural,” added Andrews of the piece that hangs at the back of the Chemainus Post Office. “We worked closely with them and the scenes they wanted on the mural.”
A huge fire that happened at the hospital in 1962 was the centrepiece.
“It kind of tied it all together,” noted Bellamy. “One hundred years, we wanted to show the past and the present. The fire kind of solidified that.”
For the Mount Brenton Golf Course mural, “the board at the golf course wanted to enhance the appearance of the clubhouse facing Henry Road,” Andrews elaborated.
There’s already been inroads on projects this year with the additions of wind sculptures across from the Chemainus Theatre and a planned mural at the Chemainus Rotary Club’s bunker where it conducts weekly bottle drops that will highlight its community involvement, projects and humanitarian aspects of the organization.
Another mural is in the works with Coast Salish artist Maynard Johnny Jr. called rebirth. Andrews said it symbolizes the rebuilding relationship with indigenous peoples and Johnny is very excited to have his mural added to the collection.
Meanwhile, the past year also marked the transferring of assets from the Chemainus Monetary Foundation to the mural society.
“The assets certainly helped us financially to finish Stefan and do other projects such as the wind sculptures,” said Bellamy.
The society secured further funding from a $25,000 gaming grant and the annual $10,000 contribution from the Municipality of North Cowichan that went a long way.
The Official Mural Guide and The Chemainus Murals book both continued to be sold at the Visitor Centre and Chemainus Valley Museum, and through the Festival of Murals website. The murals and sculptures also received the usual annual spring cleaning.
Potentially lost in the shuffle but not forgotten from 2020 was the incorporation of the piano located at The Public Market in Chemainus, In Tune With Nature, into the community mural series.
The second new mural of 2020 was Kris Friesen’s Chemainus Road – Circa 1945, installed on the north wall at 9750 Chemainus Road, and added to the historical series.
The society looks forward to continuing to promote the worldwide image created by The Little Town That Did in 2022, Andrews added.
Besides the projects already mentioned, there is a movement toward viewing the murals in a whole new light through technology available by scanning a QR code and going to an app on Smartphones. “It’s quite an exciting concept,” said Andrews.
People can also stay tuned in the late summer or early fall for the return of a mural festival and tour of all the most recent additions to the mural collection.
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don.bodger@chemainusvalleycourier.ca
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