'A splash of colour': Mural project hopes to showcase vibrant Regina community
'A splash of colour': Mural project hopes to showcase vibrant Regina community
An extra bit of colour and flair has been popping up around the Queen City lately, thanks to a community-led initiative called the Audacity Mural Project, which has a goal of commissioning 25 murals across the city by 2025.
The project stems from Audacity YQR, a community that supports individuals and organizations in their quest to display their talents. Ascent Strategy, along with the City of Regina and Economic Development Regina, collaborated with Audacity YQR to bring the mural project to life.
Jeff Boutilier, president of Ascent Strategy, said they also plan to activate the city with temporary art installations and hope to get other businesses involved.
“[We’re] really just trying to beautify the city and really sort of help capture that audacious spirit that exists in Regina that sometimes we’re a little bit too humble about,” he said.
“We actually now in Regina have the largest permanent billboard west of Toronto that went up as part of this thing which is kinda cool. It’s 80 by 20 feet over by the stadium so we’re pretty excited about that,” Boutilier said.
He said now that nicer weather is here, they are shifting gears and focusing on their permanent installations, including painted murals.
Moose Jaw artist Carly Jaye Smith is currently working on the first painted mural as part of the project, which is located at the original Leopold’s Tavern on Albert Street.
She said while the organization gave her an idea of what they wanted to see, she created the concept of the mural herself.
“They’re hoping that this is kind of like an example of what we’re trying to do and then more people want to get involved and it grows from there so I hope this is the beginning,” she said.
Smith has more than seven years of experience and she said the feedback she has received as an artist has been overwhelming.
“The amount of people that can relate to a splash of colour on the wall or have it brighten their day just for a couple minutes. It’s the small things in life that matter and I think that kind of plays into that,” she said.
One mural in her portfolio that she holds as the highest honour is in Regina’s Central Park, commemorating local baseball player, Mary Bonnie Baker.
“I grew up playing baseball. So to be a part of that project, recognizing the woman that broke the ground for females in sports, especially as a Canadian, it’s pretty cool to have that history here in Regina. To be able to paint the picture behind that is also something I hold close to heart,” she said.
She said she plans to contribute to more murals in Regina.
“I think it just makes a huge impact in the overall community, it brightens it up,” she said.
Boutilier said he hopes the project has a positive impact in the city.
“I think sometimes you just have to do cool things because they’re the right thing to do and you’ve gotta trust the universe that they’re going to have the right kind of impact,” he said. “I think sometimes in Regina, we have a little bit of difficulty seeing ourselves the way maybe others see us.”
He said he hopes the murals will be a permanent fixture in Regina.
“One of the really cool things about our city is if you go down to the warehouse district for instance, you’ll see these things we call ghost murals now, murals on the side of a business that existed 75 or 100 years ago, and we can still sort of see their outlines a little bit. It would be great if some of these murals that we’re putting up now, 100 years from now, were still there,” he said.
He said they also want to find artists and businesses to collaborate on the project.
“We’re inviting artists to submit their ideas, their concepts, and we’re going to work to sort of find the best concepts for the right locations,” he said. “We want to celebrate different aspects of our city and our culture and that audacious spirit that sort of has always been around in Regina.”
More information on the Audacity Mural Project can be found here.
Chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says Health Canada is authorizing a booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children between five and 11 years old.
A 81-year-old Danish woman traveling from Africa to Canada was arrested at Warsaw airport on suspicion of illegal possession of heroin worth over US$515,000, officials in Poland said Friday.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has nominated Ontario judge Michelle O’Bonsawin to the Supreme Court of Canada. In a statement announcing the nomination, Trudeau said that O'Bonsawin is an Abenaki member of the Odanak First Nation and is a fluently bilingual Franco-Ontarian.
A prominent Quebec cardinal is denying sexual assault allegations against him contained in a class-action lawsuit that was formally filed this week in Quebec Superior Court.
Nunavut's acting minister of community and government services says the territory has declared a state of emergency in Iqaluit to ensure the city can begin replenishing its water reservoir without delay.
As students across Canada gear up to enter what will be their fourth academic year in the pandemic, CTVNews.ca takes a look at what measures will be in place in schools, by province and territory.
As of today, individuals and businesses are no longer able to import restricted handguns into Canada, with limited exceptions. The move announced earlier this month is aimed at expediting a key pillar of the federal effort to cap the number of handguns in the country.
Transport Minister Omar Alghabra is set to testify before the House of Commons transport committee this afternoon about ongoing airport delays and flight cancellations.
The Saskatchewan NDP called on the province to remove teachers named in a multi-million dollar class action lawsuit alleging incidents of physical and verbal abuse against students by staff at the Legacy Christian Academy.
Saskatoon Police Service (SPS) and the Saskatoon Fire Department (SFD) were called out to a two-vehicle collision involving a hazardous, nuclear material Friday morning in Confederation.
Two Winnipeggers are facing drug related charges after the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) seized 30 kilograms of what is suspected to be cocaine at the port of entry in Windsor, Ont. earlier in the month.
Chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says Health Canada is authorizing a booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children between five and 11 years old.
The Calgary Police Service has cordoned off a section of the Bow River pathway and closed a lane of eastbound Memorial Drive in the northeast following a Thursday night stabbing.
Chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says Health Canada is authorizing a booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children between five and 11 years old.
Chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says Health Canada is authorizing a booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children between five and 11 years old.
Ben Stelter's fans and supporters are invited to a send-off for the six-year-old who died a week ago. A procession in honour of the Oilers superfan who was diagnosed with brain cancer at four years old will travel by Rogers Place on Friday.
Seniors and advocates say they are terrified and livid over Ontario's move to allow hospitals to send patients into long-term care homes not of their choosing.
The parent company of CTV News says it will launch an internal workplace review amid criticism of its dismissal of Lisa LaFlamme from her role as chief anchor.
Ottawa Public Health says there are "encouraging" signs about the COVID-19 situation in the capital, but warns COVID-19 levels remain high in the community just weeks before the start of the school year.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has nominated Ontario judge Michelle O’Bonsawin to the Supreme Court of Canada. In a statement announcing the nomination, Trudeau said that O'Bonsawin is an Abenaki member of the Odanak First Nation and is a fluently bilingual Franco-Ontarian.
The owner of a historic church in Ottawa's Lowertown neighbourhood is evicting a group with ties to the 'Freedom Convoy' occupation planning to purchase the property this fall, in an apparent dispute over unpaid rent for the facility.
A prominent Quebec cardinal is denying sexual assault allegations against him contained in a class-action lawsuit that was formally filed this week in Quebec Superior Court.
The Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services (NRBHSS) confirmed that the Inuk woman struck on Highway 520 in Montreal has died of her injuries.
The Coalition Avenir Quebec has unveiled its electoral campaign slogan: Let's continue. In a brief message Friday, the party states that four years ago, it had proposed many changes and, as there is still work to be done, wants to keep that momentum going.
Homicide investigators in Port Alberni, B.C., say they believe there are people in the community who have information about the killing of a 35-year-old man who have yet to come forward to police. The body of Terrance Mack was found in an apartment in the 3200-block of 3rd Avenue on May 4, 2021. Police said the man had been dead for some time before neighbours alerted officers to the scene.
The Malahat highway has reopened after it was closed in both directions for several hours Friday morning after a truck carrying live chickens crashed near the Split Rock lookout. Travellers were detoured off the Trans-Canada Highway at Shawnigan Lake Road and Shawnigan-Mill Bay Road, while oversized vehicles were being sent through West Shawnigan Lake Road.
Mounties in Langford, B.C., are asking the public for help finding a 42-year-old man who is wanted on an outstanding warrant for multiple drug offences, according to police.
A coroner’s inquest jury made almost 20 recommendations for ways New Brunswick and its law enforcement can do better in police interventions, training and equipment. CTV News polled each to see if they are considering, or have already implemented any of them.
Angela Parker-Brown may be unable to speak but that hasn't stopped her from using her voice. The mother from Truro, N.S., who is unable to speak due to ALS, recently published a memoir using technology that tracks her eye movements to form words and sentences.
Chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says Health Canada is authorizing a booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children between five and 11 years old.
Chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam says Health Canada is authorizing a booster dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for children between five and 11 years old.
The Region of Waterloo council approved a series of measures on Thursday to help ease the growing homelessness crisis, including a first-ever decision to permit an encampment.
