The creativity of local youth is on display on the west side of Lethbridge.
A new mural in the pedestrian underpass near Father Leonard Van Tighem School was unveiled on Friday, as part of the City’s Youth Engagement Pilot Project. 6
The initiative teamed young artists at the school with professional and experienced muralists Lacey Jane Wilburn and Layla Folkmann, collectively known as LALA Art. The duo was joined by assistant artist and child coordinator Leanne Kembel.
The three visited the westside school in February to speak with students.
READ MORE: Youth Engagement Pilot Project to bring vibrant new mural to West Lethbridge
As part of their stop, they tasked the students with creating drawings that were inspired by what they thought made Lethbridge special. Over 100 drawings were submitted, with a mural eventually designed that incorporated the students’ ideas.
This past Monday, grade four students joined the trio for a hands-on workshop by adding colour to already outlined shapes and characters on the overpass mural. The following day, grade six to nine students added their elements to the project.
The end result adds a burst of colour to the underpass for pedestrians walking through.
“It was really satisfying to see their pride in the project and have them be a part of every part of the project as well,” Folkmann says.
“It was so amazing to see them come up with the colours, and the designs, and I’m just really proud of this school and everything they’ve done,” adds Kembel.
The mural features a large hawk, which is the mascot for the school, as well as other elements like a prairie crocus, and on the east end of the tunnel, a sea turtle and jellyfish. The entire inside of the tunnel is filled with bright colours and images like a Canadian flag and the High Level Bridge.
Jane Wilburn says letting the kids’ creativity shine was really special.
“I hope that all these kids, as they grow older, they get more and more excited about what they’ve done and inspire the next little generation of artists to be big and bold and creative,” she says, adding what youth bring to their community matters.
“They [have] such little hands and little minds and little voices but what they do is just as important as what we as adults do, so contributing creatively to this beautiful landscape, I think is really important to us.”
Kembel says this was one of her favourite projects she has ever worked on, and hopes the students take away a sense of pride and ownership for their hard work.
“Knowing that they have the ability to make changes in their community is really important,” she remarks.
This initiative marks the first underpass mural installed in the city.
Grade nine students Lolu Awoderu and Wesley Vizcrra are two of the youngsters who helped bring the project to life.
“We got to make a lot of drawings and use a bunch of different colouring materials that we probably wouldn’t get the chance to use if we didn’t sign up for this,” Awoderu says.
“We helped paint it, we helped make it and we were there during the concept making for it, so it was like experiencing history.”
Vizcrra meanwhile, adds that it was special to learn “the techniques of how [you paint] it and the different drawings and how they’re all put together in one big area”.
Emily Boutland, a grade four teacher at the school, says it was inspiring to see so many students get involved in the initiative.
“It’s just such a neat opportunity for our youth to have an artistic voice and be part of beautifying something within our community,” she says.
“For so many years to come, as they walk through this tunnel, they’ll be able to enjoy and see that they left their mark here and that they were a part of this project.”
The Edmonton-born Jane Wilburn and Folkmann will be back in Lethbridge for Arts Days in September. They will hold a public artist talk at CASA on September 23 and speak in the Art NOW program at the University of Lethbridge on September 24.
