And blue and green and every other colour imaginable. Forty-one murals on twenty-one buildings spread throughout a central corridor in midtown Vancouver – that\u2019s the legacy created Vancouver\u2019s first Mural Festival, its founder David Vertesi and curator Drew Young. Inspired, in part, by street art in Montreal, Miami and San Francisco, the duo have mobilized property owners, City Hall and the city\u2019s arts community to bring a splash of joy and colour to Canada\u2019s west coast metropolis in what, they hope, will become an annual event.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve worked with over 300 local painters, illustrators and tattoo artists over the years at events and installations,\u201d says Festival Director and curator Drew Young who also runs Snag, a live painting night at a local hotel, a fixture in the city\u2019s alternative arts community. \u201cA lot of them haven\u2019t painted murals so seeing them go to the next level is really awesome,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

Vancouver Mural Festival Director and Curator Drew Young<\/strong><\/p>\n

Funded by a grant from the City and with help from a major arts foundation and the local business community, the team selected a roster of thirty-nine locals and six invited international artists, many of them household names in their respective countries. The artists took to the streets in early August and unveiled their works to the public August 20^{th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n}

Subject matter runs from the decorative to the political. Representational figures, symbols and huge blocks of colour \u2013 there are no restrictions on style \u2013 dot the area\u2019s warehouses, stores and coffee shops. Street art or graffiti? \u00a0Graffiti is often associated with tagging and rebellion but it doesn\u2019t matter. There are no constraints on influences either.<\/p>\n

\u201cGraffiti gets downplayed,\u201d says Young. \u201cIt gets thrown in the gutter quite often but some of the most amazing talents have come from that scene. Half the roster have probably written graffiti, liked it or been influence by it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vancouver has the highest concentration of artists per capita in Canada and although the city is well-served by public art, there are still not enough venues for locals to do their stuff. Vertesi and Young designed the Festival as another outlet for artists run by artists but these permanent installations benefit the community too. \u00a0\u00a0\u201cBeing in a position where we can bring people together and impress the public and also inspire is really nice,\u201d says Young who wants to expand the venue and bring in even more participants next year.<\/p>\n

<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/a><\/a><\/p>\n

All Images \u00a9 John Thomson<\/strong><\/p>\n

+\u00a0Vancouver Mural Festival<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

And blue and green and every other colour imaginable. Forty-one murals on twenty-one buildings spread throughout a central corridor in midtown Vancouver – that\u2019s the legacy created Vancouver\u2019s first Mural Festival, its founder David Vertesi and curator Drew Young. Inspired, in part, by street art in Montreal, Miami and San Francisco, the duo have mobilized […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":46364,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[88],"tags":[7847,7846,7848,6954,7845,6633,7844,5184],"yoast_head":"\n