After much hard work, the spectacular mural in downtown Courtenay celebrating the contributions of the Comox Valley’s Leung family is complete – well, almost.
By now, most people have seen the striking collage-style mural on the side of the Golden Carriage Building near the corner of Fifth Street and Fitzgerald Avenue. And while a very wet fall has kept local artists J. Alex Witcombe and Nick Hutton-Jay of Flywheel Studios from applying the finishing touches, the majority that has been completed is getting rave reviews.
“Even though it’s not quite complete, the response from business owners and the public has been fantastic,” says Jenny Deters, president of the Downtown Courtenay Business Improvement Association (DCBIA). “It truly has captured the history and spirit of the Leung family in a vibrant and beautiful way. It’s taken a lot of work by many people to get this project done, but the results are well worth it!”
From early discussions and assembling initial funding, to putting the call out for artists and starting a crowd-sourcing fund for further donations, the DCBIA-spearheaded project has been a couple of years in the making.
“The aim of the mural project was to both highlight the history of Courtenay’s downtown core as well as visually enrich today’s downtown community through creativity and animation using local artists,” explains Deters.
“The mural has created positive momentum, and talks are already in place for future partnerships,” she adds, noting that a plan is in the works for a new mural in Spring 2017 to be painted on the back of Ski Tak Hut.
“It’s been very gratifying to see how projects like this can bring community together through a shared artistic vision,” says Deters. “I think residents and visitors alike will be drawn to this and future collaborations. Ideally, we’d like to see Downtown Courtenay become a destination as a public art hub.”
The DCBIA wishes to express gratitude to everyone who contributed to the crowd-funding campaign, as well as those businesses and individuals who offered donations and support in various capacities to make the project possible.
Special thanks go out to the following for their contributions: Flywheel Studios, Benjamin Moore Paints, Central Builders / Home hardware, City of Courtenay, Comox Valley Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club of Courtenay, Done.Creative, Hitec-Brazen and ABC Printing & Signs.
