A new mural at the corner of Pandosy Street and West Avenue in Kelowna will be unveiled on June 23.
What: Lower Mission Mural Unveiling
Who: UBCO visual arts students and faculty, local contributors and speakers
When: Thursday, June 23, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Where: 2820 Pandosy Street, Kelowna
The latest student project from a fourth-year visual arts course at UBC Okanagan — a new mural in Kelowna’s Lower Mission neighborhood — will be celebrated on Thursday.
This project, at the corner of Pandosy Street and West Avenue, offers great value to UBCO Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) students, says visual arts professor David Doody. He and co-facilitator Jorden Doody supervise and guide students through the planning, presentation and painting stages of a public mural.
Students gain experience working with a diverse range of technologies, including projectors and mechanical lifts, while learning a variety of paint applications and techniques common to wall painting.
This is the third year the course has been offered on the Okanagan campus and David says he can see the impact and excitement a large painting like this can bring to a community.
“Murals are great ways for artists to collaborate with other artists and non-artists to create a visually encapsulated culture and community,” he says.
This year’s mural picks up on the theme of the two previous murals in downtown Kelowna – Okanagan Sensitive Habitats and Ecosystems. Each mural depicts local flora and fauna to help raise awareness of some of the area’s sensitive habitats.
“Our design this year features a large western painted turtle, showing it at sunset in a very calm, surreal setting,” notes David.
The nine students in the full-credit visual arts mural course began work in early May and wraps up this week.
UBCO’s Creative Studies Department has partnered with the Stober Group to support this year’s mural course.
“Community is important to us, and we wanted a way to add to the uniqueness and vibrancy of the Pandosy neighborhood,” says Bob Dagenais, Stober Group’s Director of Development. “Team UBCO certainly brought their ‘A’ game to make that happen.”.
On Thursday, June 23 at 5 p.m., the public is invited to the launch of the finished mural. Students, along with instructors David and Jorden Doody, will be on hand to answer questions.
Other stakeholders, including representatives from Sunbelt Rentals and the Stober Group, may also be present for the unveiling. Local contributions over the past three years total over $45,000 for this community beautification project.
David Doody is currently a lecturer in the Visual Arts program and a UBC Okanagan BFA graduate since 2008. Jorden Doody is also a UBC Okanagan BFA graduate since 2008 and recently completed his MFA. Together they run Fresh West Official and coordinate the Downtown Mural Project in Rutland.