Source of Life Mural

CreateSpace Public Art Residency is a national program designed in consultation with advisors from coast to coast, to provide emerging Black, Indigenous and racialized artists with the skills, relationships and practical experience needed to take their public art practice to the next level.

Project Type: Temporary Exhibit

Artist: Bruno Canadien

Artist Statement: The Source of Life Mural incorporates images of land and sky. Engaging with the local community was very important to the creative process from the start of the project that took months of planning and five production days. While drawing upon his perspective as a Dene artist, Bruno connected with members of the community at different stages of the mural. With Grade 11 art students from Oilfields High School, Bruno designed a concept filled with images from the land and sky, such as flowers, prairie chicken feathers and butterflies. Students also came up with the idea of incorporating their own handprints in orange as a sign of solidarity with residential school survivors. It also served as a way to give back to the medical community.

CreateSpace Mentor: Dawn Saunders Dahl

The CreateSpace Residency is made possible by support from TD Bank Group through the TD Ready Commitment, the City of Toronto as part of ArtworxTO: Toronto’s Year of Public Art 2021 – 2022, Partners in Art, MAWA, Canada Council for the Arts, and funding provided by the Government of Ontario.